Review of Pete's Dragon (2016) by Spangle — 12 Aug 2016

I could be harsher, but given the positive reception this one received amongst the young viewers in the theater, it is clear to me that the highs I identified were as good as I thought. Plus, as a children's movie, pleasing children is undeniably its first goal, which seems to have been accomplished.

Delightfully brought to life with great special effects, Pete's Dragon is at its very best when the dragon is being a dragon without human interference (other than Pete). These scenes are magical, adventurous, and could be used to make the Grinch's heart grow in size.

The interactions between Pete and the dragon are truly heartfelt and could honestly move one to tears if they are not careful. Director David Lowery does a great job capturing this emotion and also does very well in moving from indie (Ain't Them Bodies Saints) to big-budget Disney.

His solo debut, Ain't Them Bodies Saints felt like Terrence Malick-lite (namely Badlands) and had stunning cinematography. Here, Pete's Dragon is also blessed with good cinematography and shows off the Malick influence with a few shots above the trees that seem to show nothing beyond the beauty of nature, which is greatly appreciated.

Now, on the negative, the human element is trash. I assume it was the plot of the original, but it needed a serious overall. This plot was cliche in 1977 with overzealous humans who assume the dragon is all bad and unnaturally evil, while a few are sympathetic and childlike in their sympathy.

The human characters are not well-written for the most part (even if the acting is good) and it really pulls the movie back. Fortunately, the aforementioned positives do outweigh the cliched negatives.

Overall, Pete's Dragon will thoroughly entertain children while convincing adults to once again believe in magic.