Felt Like Dreamworks...

Rating: 6/10 (26 June 2012)

I think the title says it all. Brave was a fantastic movie, don't get me wrong, but it just wasn't Pixar - there are fantastic movies and there are Pixar movies that usually blows all competition out of the water - except Cars of course, but I'll leave that rant for another time. Brave had a lot of charm, magic, great characters and attention to detail, but all the way through I couldn't help feeling that one or two things were missing - humour and storytelling. When I distinguish what makes a Pixar movie different from say, a Dreamworks movie it always came down to humour and storytelling, which Brave didn't seem to have, hence it felt more like a Dreamworks movie. All the way through I was waiting for the laugh-aloud jokes that I've come to expect from a Pixar movie, but they never came. Yes, there were a few chuckle moments, but that was it - the jokes never really hit the mark. There's a part where Merida's three younger brothers are turned into bear cubs which had a lot of potential for jokes and plot development, but they were largely ignored. On a side note, the adult bears are actually pretty scary. The story also felt very mediocre - haven't we heard this one thousands of times before? A princess is to be wedded off but she doesn't want to, she wants her freedom, so she does something stupid that she regrets and she has to make amends, and everyone learns a lesson - there, I just told you the whole story, which is another reason why it felt like a Dreamworks movie, it lacked the usual creativity and imagination that makes Pixar great. I just hope their next effort will be a return to form; Brave had it's flaws but it's still not nearly as bad as Cars!