Finind a reason for Finding Dory

Rating: 4/10 (1 August 2016)

Took my two children ages 5 and 9 to watch. The opening Pixar Piper was awesome!They can really convey a story with no dialog and be totally entertaining. However, Dory with all the dialog just fell flat. I think many would agree that there are many movies that don't need a sequel, no matter how much money they made with the first.Some movies, like Nemo, already complete an original story and tie up the ends nicely. Pixar really hit the underwater CGI at 100% with Nemo. I believe that, combined with lovable characters, good main plot, and very cleaver idea interactions (sharks, crabs, gulls, dentist office and aquarium scenes, all the mini-struggles along the way, and the development of the character arcs like Marlin/Nemo, Marlin/Dory, etc) made Nemo an innovative cartoon movie for all ages, hence the immense success. Sure, writers can contrive any number of plot lines into a sequel, but form without substance renders a somewhat lackluster sequel=Dory. The movie is highly colorful and continues Pixars excellent water CGI but can't top what was already done to perfection in Nemo. The story re-acquaints the old characters with some as-expected new characters, with a brief turtle Crush cameo. The sea lions were cute, the octopus made for a few laughs, but the whole "I can't remember.." Dory character was so overused that it overshadowed the movie with a somber melodrama. I could hear many kids groaning in the theater as the movie dragged on, my two barely stayed awake. The Dory character in Nemo had a purpose, was used skillfully and moved the movie along with some slapstick lines by DeGeneres almost like Robin Williams' Aladdin. But to make that a core plot and centerpiece is not enough to carry a movie. I guess it makes sense to Hollywood to take a move like Nemo, that cost $94mil and grossed probably a billion with marketing and toys, is enough reason to stretch for a sequel. Did it work for Kung Fu Panda, Ice Age, Chipmunks, Happy Feet, Shrek, Toy Story, Despicable Me, Madagascar, How to Train Dragon? Admittedly sometimes yes, but not this time.