Review of Finding Dory (2016) by Carfan1999 — 12 Aug 2016

Finding Dory has many good things going for it. The animation is nicely improved over the original and the new characters are simply lovable. Dory is able to be the new protagonist and the backstory she's given is inspiring and heartwarming. The film's message about disability and how to deal with it is great. This shows very cleverly that someone who suffers from something can overcome it and live a normal life, just with a little extra help. Dory's memory problem; which was comic relief in the first movie; is now treated as a major problem that her and the other characters have to deal with. Most, especially Dory's parents, treat Dory the right way. They never gave up on her and found clever ways to make Dory remember certain things. Both Dory and her parents should be commended for the way they deal with their problems. The saying, "just keep swimming" is a simple, but very effective message. The fact that disability is even mentioned, let alone fully explored, is great in itself and demonstrates why Pixar is one of the best animation studios in the world. They're able to make beautiful films that have great characters and that tackle thought provoking issues; while still being funny and emotional.

Dory is no different. The old characters make nice cameo appearances and the new ones; especially Hank the octopus; could have their own spinoff movie. Many scenes are simply hilarious, especially one towards the end that had me laughing for over a minute. This definitely is more goofy over Finding Nemo, but like classic Pixar, there still many scenes that will make you tear up. There are also many scenes that were quite tense and suspenseful. The end credits song by Sia is also wonderful and sums up the feeling of this movie quite well. However, there are two major problems with Finding Dory that really set it back. First, the plotting of Dory was very clunky. There were some points that I felt that the movie was going to end and the way the plot progresses is somewhat contrived. At times, characters literally say nothing but the emotion is a bit forced, not earned. In addition, no matter how many things this movie got right, I always felt the sense throughout the runtime that this was made only to make a profit for Disney. It feels like there was no need for this to even be made in the first place, like Monsters University.

Overall, Finding Dory is clunky, contrived, and really only made to make money. Nonetheless, this "cash grab" is beautiful, emotional, and thought provoking with fine new characters and a unique story. Dory is no where near Pixar's best, but ranks similar to Monsters University and The Good Dinosaur. Although somewhat unnecessary, it's very good nonetheless.