Review of My Little Pony: The Movie (2017) by Superbattlepony — 03 Aug 2018

Definitely not a movie for everyone. If you are a fan of My Little Pony, you'll like it. It's nowhere near the dismal score critics give it at all. It's a bit better than the standard family film in regards as to how it treats the audience and such. You won't find any toilet humor here. By not pandering to a low denominator the film makes an adventure most could get some enjoyment out of.

The movie does suffer with cliches as they wanted to play it safe with the plot. Don't expect big revelations as a fan or something completely new as someone unfamiliar to the series. It is a typical go out an adventure kind of story with the baddie chasing them down, the heroes meet new friends, heroes break up in the third act, bad catches the protagonist, heroes reunite and eventually win. Though My Little Pony:The Movie doesn't do anything different in that regard the Tempest Shadow as the villain (not the "mastermind") is the best part of the movie. Regarding character, every already established character seems to either regressed, forgotten, or cast to the way side. Twilight Sparkle is the Princess of Friendship with seven seasons of character development and experience solving issues between her and her friends. Yet, she completely does a 180 at the end of the second act and blames all her friends after she makes a poor decision- that of which was also very out of character. Pinkie Pie is her usual self, before the third act break up. Rarity only helps make them friends with Capper. Rainbow Dash just got them into trouble. Lastly, Fluttershy and AJ did next to nothing.

What about the villains? The "main" villain, who goes by "The Storm King" just retreaded ground already in the series. His screen time was minimal and he felt very one-dimensional. There was no motivation or backstory as any bad cliche villain. Tempest is the exact opposite however. She has enough screen time, sings her motivations and is believable and grows throughout the story. The only problem with her is she is a bit gullible when it comes to The Storm King. However she redeems herself ends the movie with a satisfying character arc. Unlike Tempest, most of the other new characters I forgot the first time I watched this movie, which isn't a good sign. The comedic relief Grubber was unnecessary at best, and annoying at worst. Cut him from the script and nothing would change. Captain Celaeno and her pirate parrots were there for the song halfway into the movie and the final fight and that's it. Capper was interesting with his ability to smooth talk his way into trouble, but I still forgot his name after the first viewing. Princess Skystar was the only one would I could actually like enough to remember besides Tempest as she finally gains her desires of having friends in the end. Overall the movie did a pretty poor job with making the new characters memorable.

Let's end the negatives and start talking what's great about this movie. First off, the backgrounds are amazing, as is the animation in general. Most of the shots were pure eye candy. I personally didn't like the 3D CGI mixed with 2D animation but that's a personal preference. Every part is fluid and smooth which is surprising given the team's inexperience with the animation program. A lot character movements are awkwardly slow, but most will just ignore that fact. The magic effects are just overall pleasing and Rainbow Dash's Rainboom is a colorful sensation.

The designs of this movie probably one of the best parts. The redesign of the interior of Canterlot was well done and more pleasing than the original. The Storm Guard has to be one of my favorite character designs for an enemy army in a very long time. The under water city looks like it it's from The Phantom Menace (and that's a compliment). The character designs for the movie are a bit more cutesy from their original show counterparts but it fits the aesthetic well. The Storm King's design is alright, and Tempest's is excellent.

The songs are mostly fun, but forgettable with the exception of Tempest's song which is the only one I actually like to listen to. They feel like filler sometimes or in the case of Celaeno, a quick way to change a character. The show definitely had better songs.

Overall it's an alright movie. If you're a fan you'll probably enjoy it but be disappointed by how safe the plot is. If you aren't a fan it's probably not going to make you a Brony, but at least it will show you it's not about dress up and it might entertain a little at some parts. The weak story isn't enough for me to stop rewatches, and despite the shortcomings, it's still a fun movie with excellent design, animation set in a good fantasy universe.