Review of The Good Dinosaur (2015) by Neil P — 19 Aug 2016

This is a great concept and there are flashes of how the idea could be explored. Sadly it only ever scratches the surface of how interesting the idea is with some examples of dinosaurs taking up different forms of farming.

I think it could have been something really special if they'd spent a little more time fleshing out the world. As it is the story is relatively straight forward about an anxious child learning to be brave.

There are some great moments between Arlo and Spot and their take on Spot is great fun and full of charm. Initially Arlo treads a fine line between underdog and pathetic but thankfully grows as the film progresses.

Some of the natural animation in this film is jaw-dropping and had me wondering if they were mixing CGI with real film. The voice acting is also solid with Sam Elliot being awesome as always when it comes to anything cowboy like.

Overall it's a charming and beautiful film but isn't quite as smart and groundbreaking as you'd expect from Pixar given the concept and their track record.