Rotoscopers
  • News
  • Podcasts
    • Animation Addicts Podcast
    • Every Episode Ever
  • Reviews
    • Animated Movies
    • Art Books
    • Blu-ray/DVD
    • Live Action
  • Interviews
  • Opinions
  • Studios
    • Aardman
    • Blue Sky Studios
    • Disney
    • Don Bluth
    • DreamWorks
    • Fox Animation Studios
    • Illumination Entertainment
    • LAIKA
    • Lucasfilm Animation
    • Paramount Animation
    • Pixar
    • Sony Pictures Animation
    • Reel FX
    • Studio Ghibli
    • Warner Animation
  • Animation Calendar
No Result
View All Result
Rotoscopers
  • News
  • Podcasts
    • Animation Addicts Podcast
    • Every Episode Ever
  • Reviews
    • Animated Movies
    • Art Books
    • Blu-ray/DVD
    • Live Action
  • Interviews
  • Opinions
  • Studios
    • Aardman
    • Blue Sky Studios
    • Disney
    • Don Bluth
    • DreamWorks
    • Fox Animation Studios
    • Illumination Entertainment
    • LAIKA
    • Lucasfilm Animation
    • Paramount Animation
    • Pixar
    • Sony Pictures Animation
    • Reel FX
    • Studio Ghibli
    • Warner Animation
  • Animation Calendar
No Result
View All Result
Rotoscopers
No Result
View All Result
Home Opinions

Is ‘The Good Dinosaur’ Being Unfairly Judged?

AJ Howell by AJ Howell
December 6, 2015
in Opinions, Pixar
4 min read
0
Weekend Box Office: ‘The Good Dinosaur’ Is Just… Good
3.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Good-Dinosaur-Poster

By the time The Good Dinosaur released on Thanksgiving weekend, most of us animation fans were clutching our tickets in eager anticipation. What else would we be doing? Pixar just came off of a VERY high point with Inside Out, a huge critical and commercial success. Sure, we knew that The Good Dinosaur went back under the knife due to story problems. However, we knew that Pixar’s story crew (not to mention the fabled Pixar Braintrust) did heavy work on the story and finally deemed it ready to grace audiences. On top of that, we saw the trailers and how beautiful they were. So, yes, we were anxious to see the film.

Then the reviews started to come in. If I had to describe the overall tone of the reviews in one word, it would be “lukewarm.” None of the reviews were particularly bad (okay, maybe one or two were), but almost all of them had a caveat or two attached to them. Heck, even my initial review did.

Now, don’t get me wrong; there’s certainly nothing wrong with having reservations about a movie. That’s part of a critic’s job. However, I feel that a few of the largest objections are somewhat silly and/or unfair. In this article, I’d like to discuss what I perceive as the three biggest objections to The Good Dinosaur and why I think they’re invalid.

Criticism #1: The Dinosaurs Look Too Fake

the-good-dinosaur-arlo-poppa

This is the most well-grounded of these three criticisms, but it still deserves a place here. This critique boils down to this: Arlo, Spot, and all the other characters look fake against the photo-realistic backgrounds. These allegations are particularly heavy against Arlo and the T-rex family; most critics say that they have a plastic, action figure-like quality that could pull audiences out of the story.

I have to admit that Arlo and his dinosaur friends do look a little plastic. However, I don’t feel like that is the real issue here. The bigger problem is suspension of disbelief. In the world the filmmakers created in The Good Dinosaur, all dinosaurs have a toy-like quality. It’s not something that needs to be explained; it’s just the way things are in this film’s world. Once we can accept that part of the movie’s world, the characters’ looks cease to be a problem.

Now, you could say that the filmmakers didn’t get you into the right state of mind. That’s perfectly fine. That’s your opinion, and I can’t argue with that. Personally, however, I had no problem buying into Arlo’s design. I was able to lift the weight of my disbelief and keep it up in the air for the whole length of The Good Dinosaur.

Criticism #2: The Story Isn’t Original

good dinosaur famiy

The second most common criticism I’ve heard (and one that I had in my original review) is that the story isn’t fresh or original. Critics who wield this critique take Pixar to task for lifting story elements from movies like The Lion King, Born Free, and scores of western movies. This argument isn’t an unfair one; I can totally see where these critics are coming from. It is a fairly silly criticism, though.

Borrowing story elements isn’t new territory for Pixar. The whole plot of A Bug’s Life is lifted directly from movies like The Magnificent Seven and Three Amigos!. WALL-E borrows plot points from sci-fi movies like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Silent Running. A full third of Toy Story 3 is modeled after every prison break movie you’ve ever seen. Does this borrowing make these great Pixar movies any less great? I don’t think so, for these movies managed to take these classic elements and make something unique out of them.

A person could call The Good Dinosaur a lot of things, but one definitely couldn’t call it unoriginal. A movie about dinosaurs who raise crops, go on cattle drives, and talk like Sam Elliott? Definitely not something you see every day. Sure, the basic plot structure is something we’ve seen hundreds of times. It works, though. Pixar’s story crew did a great job taking classic, tried-and-true story elements and creating something we’ve never seen before.

Criticism #3: It’s Not As Good As Pixar’s Other Work

Good-Dinosaur-concept-art

This is definitely the most common complaint I’ve seen, and it’s also the most unfair. Essentially, this criticism boils down to comments like this:

“The Good Dinosaur is good, but it’s not as good as what Pixar has done before.”

Or this:

“We’ve really come to expect more from Pixar.”

In my mind, the jury’s still out on whether we should compare movies at all when we review them. After all, movies aren’t made to compete with each other; they’re made to stand as separate works of art. That’s another discussion for another time, though. I definitely have a problem, however, with being harder on Pixar than we are on other studios.

I can understand why critics hold Pixar to a higher standard. After all, Pixar does have a better track record than a lot of other studios. However, it’s not right to rate a movie lower than one usually would just because it came from Pixar. That’s not fair to The Good Dinosaur, Peter Sohn, the other filmmakers, or Pixar.

Pixar is not infallible. It’s run by human beings, and human beings make mistakes. Therefore, the studio is bound to hit a snag or two. We shouldn’t judge Pixar’s follies more harshly than other studios’s faults, just because Pixar has a cleaner record.

Do I think that The Good Dinosaur is a masterpiece? I honestly have to say that I don’t. The movie has some flaws that are hard for me to get around. I do think it’s a decent film, though, and that it deserves a fairer treatment than it’s been getting. If you want to critique The Good Dinosaur, fine. Do it properly, though!

What do you think? Is The Good Dinosaur being judged too harshly? Why or why not?

Edited by: Hannah Wilkes

Tags: Pixarrotoscopersthe good dinosaur
Previous Post

Animation Addicts Podcast #109: ‘The Good Dinosaur’ – Brought to You By Montana!

Next Post

Funding for Don Bluth’s ‘Dragon’s Lair: The Movie’ Begins Again

AJ Howell

AJ Howell

AJ's love of movies began when his mom took him to see The Lion King on a warm California day in 1994. He left the theater with his mind blown and with a strong desire to become a filmmaker. AJ's fascinated with films of all kinds, but animated films have always held a special place in his heart, particularly Disney animation, the work of Chuck Jones, and Bill Melendez and Lee Mendelson's Peanuts specials. His favorite animated films include (but aren't limited to) Frozen, Beauty And The Beast, Surf's Up, The Bugs Bunny/RoadRunner Movie, and Toy Story 3. Along with films, AJ also loves pop and rock music, hiking, the beach, comic books, traveling, writing, acting, and baseball.

Related Posts

Animation Addicts Podcast #253: Categorizing the Pixar Songs
Animation Addicts Podcast

Animation Addicts Podcast #253: Categorizing the Pixar Songs

May 31, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #247: Ranking the Best Disney Sidekick Songs
Animation Addicts Podcast

Animation Addicts Podcast #247: Ranking the Best Disney Sidekick Songs

April 19, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #243: Turning Red – 4 Town 4 Life
Animated Movies

Animation Addicts Podcast #243: Turning Red – 4 Town 4 Life

March 15, 2022
[OPINION] 10 Heartwarming Animated Adverts to Watch This Holiday Season
Coronavirus

[OPINION] 10 Heartwarming Animated Adverts to Watch This Holiday Season

December 17, 2021
Load More
Next Post
Funding for Don Bluth’s ‘Dragon’s Lair: The Movie’ Begins Again

Funding for Don Bluth's 'Dragon's Lair: The Movie' Begins Again

Discussion about this post

Popular Posts

  • [REVIEW] ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ – If It Ain’t Broke… Just Add More? 97 views
  • Animation Addicts Podcast #257: Looking Back At The Disney Afternoon 78 views
  • Animation Addicts Podcast #254: Swan Princess 9 Kingdom of Music – This Ain’t Your Momma’s Swan Princess 41 views
  • Animation Addicts Podcast #255: Swan Princess 10: A Royal Wedding – What Else Is There? 26 views
  • Animation Addicts Podcast #256 Alice In Wonderland – Know Your Drugs 21 views
  • 11k Fans
  • 12k Followers
  • 5.8k Followers
  • 5.3k Followers

Recently Added

[REVIEW] ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ – If It Ain’t Broke… Just Add More?

[REVIEW] ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ – If It Ain’t Broke… Just Add More?

July 1, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #257: Looking Back At The Disney Afternoon

Animation Addicts Podcast #257: Looking Back At The Disney Afternoon

June 28, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #256 Alice In Wonderland – Know Your Drugs

Animation Addicts Podcast #256 Alice In Wonderland – Know Your Drugs

June 21, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #255: Swan Princess 10: A Royal Wedding – What Else Is There?

Animation Addicts Podcast #255: Swan Princess 10: A Royal Wedding – What Else Is There?

June 14, 2022
Animation Addicts Podcast #254: Swan Princess 9 Kingdom of Music – This Ain’t Your Momma’s Swan Princess

Animation Addicts Podcast #254: Swan Princess 9 Kingdom of Music – This Ain’t Your Momma’s Swan Princess

June 7, 2022
Rotoscopers

© 2019 Rotoscopers

Important Links

  • About
  • Support
  • Contact
  • Store
  • Privacy Policy
  • User Posts

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Podcasts
    • Animation Addicts Podcast
    • Every Episode Ever
  • Reviews
    • Animated Movies
    • Art Books
    • Blu-ray/DVD
    • Live Action
  • Interviews
  • Opinions
  • Studios
    • Aardman
    • Blue Sky Studios
    • Disney
    • Don Bluth
    • DreamWorks
    • Fox Animation Studios
    • Illumination Entertainment
    • LAIKA
    • Lucasfilm Animation
    • Paramount Animation
    • Pixar
    • Sony Pictures Animation
    • Reel FX
    • Studio Ghibli
    • Warner Animation
  • Animation Calendar

© 2019 Rotoscopers

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Posting....