Review of Ferdinand (2017) by Charlie P — 28 Mar 2018

From Mexico to Spain, this year is very international.

FERDINAND.

Looking back, this year hasn't been the greatest when it comes to the animation genre. Apart from the obvious Pixar's masterpiece Coco, there haven't been any standouts that demanded a second watching from me. I haven't watched The Breadwinner yet but how does Ferdinand and The Boss Baby get to be considered two of the five best movies of the year? I miss Ghibli's annual nomination which, like, Pixar used to give us consistent masterful works every single year. And it's not that Ferdinand is bad but it's certainly no more than mediocre. It's a movie with the complexity of, for example, Rio which was no wonder either. And although the main character is immensely lovable, he's surrounded by archetypes who don't get to further themselves. Even the script denies itself the opportunity to delve in its heaviest themes, as it dodges every opportunity of a strong emotional punch in order not to scar young audiences. You know, kids are progressively less impressionable and sure, cohesive and straight-forward storytelling will cut it for them but it will not, however, be enough for us. There would be so much potential to send an anti bullfighting message with this film but it shies away from that. Ferdinand is, for the lack of a better word, a breeze. You are mildly entertained and then it ends. Its greatest flaw may be the lack of what true filmmaking has to spare: subtext. And that means the difference between breaking a china shop and grabbing the bull by the horns.