Review of Brave (2012) by Mike W — 17 Jun 2013

Going into Brave with the expectation that it will match up with Pixar's best movies (Finding Nemo, Up, Toy Story 3, etc.) is basically setting yourself up for a massive disappointment. However, if you're looking for a simple fairy tale of action and adventure - that also happens to be rather hilarious - I can almost guarantee you will be satisfied.

I liked Brave's characters far more than I thought I would, especially Merida, who made for a fantastic heroine. On the comic relief side of things, her younger brothers had me laughing pretty much the whole way through, although I was a little sad to see them gone for most of the middle of the film - which arguably, might be the weakest part of the movie.

Sure, the story doesn't descend into cliches and the mediocrity of most fairy tales, but the twist will certainly turn off some people. I thought it was quite original, but there were certainly some similarities to other animated films like Brother Bear.

Aside from the plot, though, Brave won me over with its rich characters and breathtaking animation. Pretty untypical of Pixar to deliver a film that is less than astounding, but even so, Brave is still worth a try.

Just don't go in expecting animated perfection.