Review of The Land Before Time (1988) by Matthew T — 21 Sep 2015

Before you ask, no I'm not reviewing the sequel "in fact I don't even want to talk about them"; yeah 2-7 maybe alright but onward's god why does this movie hit me so good. much like Jurassic park, Land Before Time was pretty much my Disney flick and more so then ever. making this the one my ultimate childhood nostalgia's (along with Godzilla, JP, and many others).

our story begins on the brink of the apocalypse, were food is scarce and the dinosaurs have to migrate to find the great valley for refuge; story centers around a young brontosaurus Littlefoot and his, family have been separated especially his mother after being murdered by a Tyrannosaurus Rex "you had to be a big shot didn't ya Mr. T". and along the way he runs to very colorful characters who join him on his quest while also surviving harsh nature, predators and keeping together till they find the great valley.

now this where you get good heart felt drama not by going on an adventure, but the interaction of good characters as they go through these challenges to get their goals; yeah it may seem harsh and tragic but guess what your in the dinosaur age nature's gonna eat ya alive. Due to this we get very well developed and genuine characters like Sara, Spike, Petrie, Ducky and Littlefoot yeah some have old cliched rolls like Sara being the tomboy tough girl, Petrie the coward and spike as the hungry fat boy "no offense" but that doesn't make then unlikable actually in a way it makes them very relate able especially at their tragic moments. My favorite is The tyrannosaurus not because he is the bad-ass villain, or because of the name but what type of villain, he's a villain of nature his attacking them out of shear hunger so "technically" he is not a villain but a figment of nature an obstacle they must face which amps the drama so his kind of neutral.

to finish this off, is when I look back at this not as a childhood dream, but as a pathway to adulthood. Why? Because as the characters go on their journey they-grow-up or mature if you might say. yeah they do fight especially with Littlefoot and Sara but what makes it good is that they work through it cause' to let you know your gonna get in a fight or roughed on and it sucks, but that's life it helps you mature. Any final would be this Great Valley can tell the Nesting Grounds in Disney dinosaur to go take a hike.