Review of Brave (2012) by Isaac B — 24 Jun 2015

As a Disney film, Brave holds up with the rest of them. There is definitely some fun to be had however when people go into watching this one with full acknowledgment and expectations of a Pixar film, there will be some disappointment. This movie is just another animated film, not a Pixar animated spectacle. The animation is still on par with the other films and so is some of the comedic efforts. The three brothers were by far my favorite part of the movie. They were hilarious every time they were in a scene and I would have cared a lot more if they were the focus point. Merida was a great character though. Her arc is crisp and clear and is not one of the flaws. Which, there are several that come to mind. The first being, this is a creative step down from their other works. Pixar is known for breaking the walls of what is creatively possible and expected. Each and every film they've made is one that contains a concept which cannot be thought of by the average person. Brave does not fall under this category. Still a fascinating tale but lazy when you look at the idea behind Up, Toy Story, Ratatouille, and most recently Inside Out. Luckily for Brave, it was sandwiched between two of Pixar's other arguably not so great films Cars 2 and Monsters University. MU was a solid flick but yet I feel loses to Brave while Cars 2 is... Cars 2.

Now to get into the three last major disappointments I had, I have to talk spoilers. SPOILER ALERT: What the fuck ever happened to the witch??? Why did they leave that completely unresolved? Where's the revenge!? The way they set it up makes it feel like the whole movie is leading toward a big climax where the witch's schemes are put to an end. And yet, she is still out there, turning countless people into bears. It just made no sense. Also, the fourth prince/bear who was involved in that awesome bear fight at the end, his purpose in the film was not clear at all. There was not much of a resolution to his reason for appearing either. Okay, my last disappointment was with Merida's dad King Fergus. Why was he never worried where his wife had gone during the film? Why didn't he apologize for almost killing her? There were plenty of weird empty holes left in the plot when the credits began to role that held this one way down. It's these parts of the movie along with its lesser creative sparks that bring Brave down toward the bottom of Pixar's A+ gallery. Still worth a watch however, go into it like you would with Tangled, The Princess and the Frog, and Bolt, and you'll be sure to enjoy it more than otherwise.