It’s times like these when you curse the rising cost of tissue papers. Stock up people, Pixar has done it yet again! Not only has Pixar, for the first time ever, released two feature films in a year, they’re both pretty effective at crying you dry.
While being one of the few movies to use 3D properly, the only time the 3D glasses were counter-productive was when I had to remove them to wipe the tears from my eyes. I am not even exaggerating this one bit. I’m sure you guys would know the headache we tend to have after watching a 3D movie, but during this movie, the 3D blends in so perfectly that I did not feel any discomfort throughout.
Related: Pixar Pretty Much Owns Your Wallet
Another element that works well with the 3D is the backgrounds. As I mentioned in a previous article, Pixar upped their game with new software that help create final renders of backgrounds that make the footage look live-action. If you remove the characters from the film, the backgrounds could actually be used to make the greatest tourism board video of a non-existent place. Damn, now I really wanna visit that place…or move there permanently.
People may argue that the premise just seems like an animated Jurassic World (lol no, just no), however, the film’s prologue sets up a completely different tone and environment for the story. The human-like characteristics of the dinosaurs help us relate to them very early into the film, so much so that we are able to accept the dinosaurs as intellectually superior and the humans themselves as animals.
The chemistry between Arlo, the young dinosaur, and Spot, the dog-like human boy, is extremely well handled. The progression of their friendship over the course of the film helps the audience bond to their relationship. The biggest compliment to this is the brilliantly written silent humor between the two of them.
Sprinkle that with Pixar’s most powerful asset in their deck of d*ck moves: the tear-jerker scenes. The friendship between Arlo and Spot causes precipitation from the audience’s eyes just like most of Pixar’s previous films.
Not cool, Pixar *sniffs*… not cool.
Related: Inside Out Makes You Feel Them Feelings
As much as I agree that top spot this year undoubtedly belongs to Inside Out, The Good Dinosaur can stand alone as a brilliant movie too. The biggest difference in the two movies would be the maturity of the subject matter. The Good Dinosaur deals with everyday feelings and morals, while Inside Out dealt with each individual feeling and how they combined to form new emotions.
Boy! I know! A movie like that is hard to match up to, if not to compete against, but The Good Dinosaur did come extremely close and would definitely make it into the list of the top releases this year.
The Good Dinosaur hits Singaporean theaters 26th November 2015.