Image courtesy of moviemania.io
Hello, everyone. In keeping with the subject of the last review, Deep Impact, I am continuing to cover good movies for now. Deciding to start now proved to be perfect timing, because it coincided with the 20th Anniversary of another childhood favorite of mine. It’s also the same timeframe as the previous one.
Speaking of which, for the first time since then, we go to the Wonderful World of Disney. Last year, I covered Tarzan, which was one of two Disney movies I grew up with the most. This year, I can finally cover the other one. This, too, has been one that I would always hold close to my heart.
Whereas Tarzan was set in the 1890s, for this one, we go back much further… around 65 million years. Tarzan may have marked the end of an era (that being the Disney Renaissance), but this one was right in the middle of one.
This came out at a time in the 1990s going into the 2000s where whenever children saw these creatures in something, they ate it up… and I would know, because I was one of them.
Folks, I finally bring you a review I’ve been waiting to do, and that is for Disney’s Dinosaur.
Following an attack by a vicious Carnotaurus where an Iguanodon mother had to abandon her nest, only one egg remains. The egg travels* across several different areas before finally ending up on an island populated by a family of lemurs. The matriarch of the family, Plio, witnesses the egg hatch. She names the baby Aladar, and takes him in as her adopted son, the initial vehement objections from her father Yar notwithstanding.
Many years later, Aladar has grown up, and it’s the night of the annual mating ritual for the lemurs. All seems peaceful once the ritual is over, but it is not to be. Not long after, a meteor shower occurs, during which a giant one impacts Earth. The ensuing shockwave destroys their home. The only ones who manage to escape are Aladar, Yar, Plio, her brother Zini, and her daughter Suri.
Upon making it to the mainland, they set out in search of their new home. During their journey, they encounter a herd already on a journey of their own, looking for a place known as the Nesting Grounds, which should provide enough food for them to thrive, as well as sanctuary from what predators may be in their way.
What Worked: Much like Tarzan, the animation is phenomenal in this movie, too. If you want an example of CGI animation done right, look no further than this. There is some live-action animation as well, which is basically the environments around the characters. You could say it’s photorealistic in a sense, then, because how they complement each other is excellent.
This goes to show that CGI animation can work just as well as hand-drawn animation. What’s equally as important as having the animation stand out is having it benefit the story and characters. The characters genuinely feel like they have personality and life to them. It therefore allows you to see them express emotion. There are some scenes where you might just feel something, too, especially if you’ve seen this before, but not in a long time.
Aside from the animation, the thing that makes this movie stand out the most is the music. There may not be any Phil Collins here, but you don’t need it. Sometimes a score is enough to suffice. In fact, the closest you get to actual lyrics is the background choir at certain points, most notably in the opening sequence that was used very prominently in the initial batch of marketing. In fact, the whole opening sequence was used as the teaser trailer.
Something you’ll be surprised to know about the music, because you wouldn’t know it from hearing it in the movie, is this: The conductor of the choir famously heard in both versions of The Lion King’s opening sequence also worked on the music here. He would later reunite with James Newton Howard on Atlantis: The Lost Empire, an underrated Disney movie.
Even when the choir is not heard, James Newton Howard’s score is fantastic. He’s done so many great scores, this being among my favorites. Following this, he would go on to score Unbreakable, and collaborate with Hans Zimmer on Batman Begins, thus giving us the theme for The Dark Knight Trilogy.
His score here, though, is one that hits all the right notes (no pun intended). There are some cues that leave you in shock and awe at what you’re seeing, some that are kind of depressing, some that are frightening, and some that just have a triumphant feel.
Now let’s get to the characters themselves, starting with the voice acting. This was a point of contention when this movie came out, because it was during a time when dinosaurs were popular, but people were mostly used to them being vocalized through growls and roars, with The Land Before Time being a notable exception. One example that was particularly popular around the time of this movie’s release was Walking with Dinosaurs, a series which only had narration.
This movie has legitimate voice acting in it, however, which was and still is Disney’s thing. For some, it may have been jarring to include it here, but I believe it helped distinguish it from the rest by solidifying that this is a Disney movie.
The voice acting here is really good. It doesn’t have nearly as many big names as Tarzan did, but it has some definitely worth mentioning.
Aladar is voiced by D.B. Sweeney, who would go on to voice a certain Airbender in The Legend of Korra**. He brings a sense of charisma and charm to Aladar, and certainly one of determination to keep everyone safe. That alone makes you want to root for him.
One of the bigger names in this is Alfre Woodard, who voices Plio. She’s had more high-profile work as of late, most recently voicing Simba’s mother Sarabi in last year’s live-action version of The Lion King. She conveys the motherly love and compassion aspects of Plio very well.
Another one is Ossie Davis (the voice of Yar), who had earlier played Eddie Murphy’s father in Dr. Dolittle. Yar is very compassionate on the inside, but prefers not to show it through a gruff demeanor. He and Alfre Woodard have very genuine chemistry as father and daughter.
Then we get to one of my two favorite characters in the movie: Zini, voiced by Max Casella, perhaps best known for voicing Daxter in the Jak and Daxter games. In addition to being Plio’s brother, he’s also Aladar’s best friend. He and D.B. Sweeney are great at playing off each other, as they do deliver some solid banter between their characters, and it’s often pretty funny.
Someone from the mid-to-late 2000s whose name you might recognize is Hayden Panettiere (yes, the same one who played the cheerleader from Heroes) as Suri. Even though she was younger at the time, she’s still good here, especially for a voice acting performance.
One of the other relatively recognizable names here is Julianna Margulies as Neera, a female Iguanodon who takes an interest in Aladar. Prior to this, she was best known for ER, and would go on to bear witness to the famous line in Snakes on a Plane. She gives a very calm and gentle performance, which in turn gives Neera a very civil demeanor, especially compared to her brother, Kron***.
Kron, by contrast, is ruthless, selfish, and very short-tempered. He’s also the dictator (I mean, leader) of the herd. If anything, you feel bad that Neera is related to him because of how unlikable he really is. There’s even one shot of him looking out at Aladar and Neera where it feels like he’s the embodiment of a character that doesn’t take too kindly to a loved one being in a relationship. It’s really surprising that they got Samuel E. Wright, the same voice actor as Sebastian from The Little Mermaid, to voice him.
In other words, if Kron doesn’t frighten you, the Carnotaurs (as they’re called in the movie) and Raptors will. I’ll get to them in a second.
The last two voice actors worth mentioning are Joan Plowright (who had a minor role in Last Action Hero) as Baylene and Della Reese (Touched by an Angel) as Eema. They’re both elderly, and yet you still care for them. Baylene is the last Brachiosaurus, and Eema is a slow mover for a Styracosaurus, which was similar to a Triceratops. Another reason to care for them is that they both feel like old friends.
There is one more character, which is Kron’s lieutenant, Bruton, but he isn’t in the movie that much. However, he is more likable compared to him.
Then we get to the best character in the movie: an Ankylosaurus named Url, who’s basically Eema’s pet, as he’s pretty much the dinosaur equivalent of a dog in this movie. There’s a running gag of sorts with him holding something in his mouth, wanting to play Fetch, and it’s hilarious. Dog lovers will most likely love him.
Url is really the only one of the main characters who doesn’t speak. The rest are either background characters or the evil ones.
There are some scary moments in this. Whenever the Carnotaurs show up, their presence alone is frightening. Then we get to the Raptors, who are less prominent, but their appearance still leaves an impact. There are two particular shots of them that stand out. One is a shot of a Raptor's eye, the other is when you get a good look at a Raptor’s mouth.
The most intense scene doesn’t involve them. It’s actually the meteor shower scene. In a way, it’s also the saddest scene. At first, it has a gorgeous display across the night sky, but then it isn’t long before you realize something’s about to happen. If you thought the characters in Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom had it rough with their island being destroyed, you haven’t seen rough until you’ve seen this.
There is one thing this movie does that I really appreciate. It goes full circle over the course of its runtime, which is rare. Usually, it takes multiple movies to tie up loose ends in a satisfying way. It’s unbelievable that they were able to pull it off over the course of just one here. All I’ll say is this: Keep the first few minutes in mind.
A couple more things to mention: This movie’s cinematography is fantastic. It still looks great today.
It’s also edited very well. For a movie that’s only 82 minutes, it goes by quickly, and doesn’t feel rushed once. In fact, the runtime it has is actually perfect. It allows the story to be told properly, and keep the tone and pace consistent.
Overall: Dinosaur, like Tarzan before it, holds up remarkably well for a movie that’s now 20 years old. Prior to watching it for the first time in so long, I was unsure if it would hold up and be as great as I remember.
Having seen it after all this time for this review, I can gladly say that even now, I love this movie.
The animation still looks great, especially by photorealistic standards. The voice acting is really good, with some genuine chemistry and occasional banter between the characters, who for the most part you can get behind. It has a compelling story with the right amount of humor and emotion to carry it, with some suspense along the way whenever the Carnotaurs and the Raptors show up.
The score hits all the right beats, making it one of James Newton Howard’s finest works, and one of my personal favorites (“The Egg Travels” alone makes it worth a listen).
It’s one of the best shot, as well as best edited, movies when it comes to family films. It may be short, but it takes the time it has to tell its story and uses it perfectly. It never feels rushed, it just naturally progresses from beginning to end, with both one of the best opening sequences I’ve seen in an animated movie and one of the best endings to one.
The experience of watching it is something I’ll never forget, and I guarantee that neither will you, whether it’s your first time or not.
*Which is the name of what you could say is the theme for this movie.
**Yes, folks, he was the voice of the adult version of Aang. I’m just as surprised as you are.
***Pronounced “Krone.”