Doesn't Compare To Finding Nemo

Rating: 4/10 (3 July 2016)

Sometimes there are films that are untouchable and I think something like Finding Nemo was one of them. Whilst Dory was a beloved character in the film, I believe it was a stretch having her become the star of her own film in Finding Dory.
The other problem with creating spin-off films (or sequels and remakes for that matter), is that you find yourself consistently comparing them to the original. This can be detrimental if the original was close to perfection. I found that the things I loved about Finding Nemo were missing from Finding Dory. One of the great things about the first movie was that the adventure was never-ending. We started with the loss of Nemo and we followed his father Marlon and his sidekick Dory on a quest to find him. Along the way, we met various characters and encountered differing scenarios that kept us on our toes. The gnarly surfer dude sea turtles, the immense field of jellyfish, the creepy creature that lured the two protagonists with a distracting shiny light dangling from the tip of his head and the group of wannabe vegetarian sharks (lead by the intimidating but friendly Bruce). Not to mention what Nemo was going through and the friends and foes he was encountering at a dental surgery in Sydney.
Finding Dory didn't really have any of that. Whilst Dory did meet a few quirky friends along the way, I felt like the flow of the film was missing. Either the interactions were brief (like when she met a couple of fish who were trying to help Dory but couldn't figure her out because of her condition), or they were long and laboured (like when she met Hank the octopus and subsequently Bailey and Destiny at the Marine Life Institute). For me, it seemed like Dory was quick to move from point A to point B (from Australia to the United States) but then lingered on point B for a very long time.
Visually, as was expected, the film was faultless and despite all of the above, there were still some delightful moments that made you laugh and made you cry. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to keep me interested and instead of wanting Dory to find herself, I found myself looking at my watch and waiting for the end credits to begin rolling.
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