May not be Pixar's best, but still very good

Rating: 8/10 (24 June 2012)

While this doesn't quite rank alongside Pixar's very best work, it's very good. Animation-wise, I'd say it definitely ranks high up there, and it may even be their best. I could never successfully say how much I love Princess Merida's hair, for instance. It's just gorgeous, and used so perfectly in the film. Both the landscapes and the character animations are truly awe-inspiring. The flaws are in the writing, but they hardly destroy the movie. The story is too simple, too predictable. Major plot points happen too quickly and problems are solved a bit too easily. And it is perhaps a bit too slapsticky. I think Pixar was scared they couldn't get boys in the theater with their female protagonist, so they included a lot of lowbrow comedy. However, I would say it was never that bothersome to me. For the most part, I laughed when they wanted me to laugh. And I cried when they wanted me to cry. It is an involving story, and the mother/daughter relationship which is the focus is touching. Kelly MacDonald is wonderful in the lead (loved her forever, and so glad she replaced Reese Witherspoon) and Emma Thompson matches her in the mother role. All in all, perhaps not a major work, but still very satisfying.