Brave

[Gopher]

http://www.slashfilm.com/15-reasons-brave-doesnt-feel-like-pixar-filmUnfortunately I agree with a lot of this. On a fundamental story/character level it just doesn't measure up to Toy Story, Nemo, WALL-E and the like.

[Rudolf]

Brave is an interesting highly watchable movieit just does not feel like a fairy tale, for instance the witch is a joke

[AniNate]

http://www.slashfilm...like-pixar-filmUnfortunately I agree with a lot of this. On a fundamental story/character level it just doesn't measure up to Toy Story, Nemo, WALL-E and the like.

My response to that is two words: So what?It was crafted as an old-fashioned folk tale, and that's exactly what it turned out to be. If it's "only" as deep as some of Disney's best films, I don't have any problem with that. Edited June 25, 2012 by tribefan695

[whoot]

My response to that is two words: So what?It was crafted as an old-fashioned folk tale, and that's exactly what it turned out to be. If it's "only" as deep as some of Disney's best films, I don't have any problem with that.

I will add, "Did you see Cars 2? You should be downright groveling with appreciation for this majestic film if we're rating movies based on the studios' past ones now."

[Gopher]

I saw it again (in 2D). Unfortunately I liked it less.The songs are really pretty, though.

[Kvikk Lunsj]

I found Brave better thanFinding NemoToy Story 2Monster Inc.A bugs LifeCarsThe IncredibleWall-e

[Gopher]

I found Brave better thanFinding NemoToy Story 2Monster Inc.The IncredibleWall-e

[AniNate]

I haven't been able to stop thinking about this movie ever since seeing it. Every time I try to understand the dissenting perspective by reading some incredibly negative review I always wind up thinking "You're full of it" by the time I'm done. Hopefully more people will appreciate it as much as I do in the future.

[Gopher]

I don't like/understand the reviews that say ''this would be a pretty good Dreamworks movie.'' From any studio, this movie would have a crappy second act.

[AniNate]

Man, you've sure done a 180 on this film since seeing it, haven't you?

[Gopher]

I still like the first and third acts. So it's more like a 60.

[lab276]

The second act is the best part.

[Gopher]

The second act was rushed and fundamentally didn't work for me. There should have been literally 10-15 minutes of Merida/Elinor time after the escape from Mordu and before they return to the castle. They say how much they changed at the end of the movie, but I never really got to see it.

I think that's one of the reasons this movie is ticking off Pixar fans, but the bigger one is that the studio is usually so great at building rich, clear worlds, that just having shit happen because it's a fairy tale feels cheap. I'm not saying Pixar couldn't do a rich, well-told fable, but they didn't do it well enough here.

[AniNate]

At that point there was a sense of urgency on Merida's part to get back. She wasn't just going to sit down and think now that she had a clear idea about what she had to do to get her mom changed back to a human.There were two setpieces where each character learned to appreciate each other's virtues: Elinor with the fish and Merida with the detour to Mor'du's lair, with her realization that her lessons with her mom did in fact have some relevance and that she could use it to her advantage with the suitors.

Edited June 27, 2012 by tribefan695

[Gopher]

And those were mostly fine. The suitor thing was never as compelling as the mother/daughter relationship (because how many times have we seen that story?) so I'm actually glad they wrapped that up as quickly as they did. But we needed more Merida/Elinor development, no doubt in my mind. I'm not going to moan about what I wanted out of Brave (because I wanted a completely different movie). I got the movie I got. But if they had a real moment before the climax where Merida confronts her mother about their relationship and what she has done, then I would have connected with that. I would have bought the idea that they changed. I didn't connect with the fish catching scene or the initial Mordu scene because I never felt that their development was the focal point of either scene. So when they told each other that they had both changed, I didn't really buy it. One of my first comments about the movie was that it knows what it needs to do (ex. strong set-up and conclusion) but it doesn't know how to do it. You could even say that I liked Brave enough that I wish it didn't come up so slight in some areas. IMHO it shows in its shortcomings how well built the worlds of other Pixar movies were. I guess you could say it's a lesson, or a legend, or whatever.

[AniNate]

I'm not sure the ending would have been as powerful as it had been had they actually realized their change beforehand. For Merida it's kind of a "don't know what you've got til it's gone" moment. With her believing her mother to be completely gone, she realizes how much she means to her and badly wants her back, and that was what was really meant by the "mend the bond torn by pride" chant. Had that already been settled it might've come off as just a lame Disney Death.

Edited June 27, 2012 by tribefan695

[Gopher]

They didn't have to necessarily fully realize their change, but I would have liked more of an effort to address their relationship beforehand, beyond the two scenes you mentioned.

I thought the triplets were fleshed out as well as they could have been, but at the end of the day I wanted more time set with these characters in this world before the grand finale. A richer experience. Maybe I would have liked Chapman's cut more. All I know is this didn't feel like a complete movie.

[CloneWars]

Sorry. This film felt lacking. I felt like there should have been something added. I'm not sure what, but this felt like a basic film that went from plot point to plot point, lacking the depth of previous Pixar films. This is my least favorite Pixar film of all-time. Yes, I like Cars 2 more than this film.

[CloneWars]

They didn't have to necessarily fully realize their change, but I would have liked more of an effort to address their relationship beforehand, beyond the two scenes you mentioned.

I thought the triplets were fleshed out as well as they could have been, but at the end of the day I wanted more time set with these characters in this world before the grand finale. A richer experience. Maybe I would have liked Chapman's cut more. All I know is this didn't feel like a complete movie.

I agree. I felt a bit cheated at the end. I was hoping/expecting for the mother to stay a bear and maybe have Merida and the father turn into a bear for the ending. Now, that would have been a more awesome and better ending, but as you said, this didn't feel complete. At the end, I was like, "that's it."

[AniNate]

Wait, you wanted a sad ending?