Dog’s Movie House: “The Good Dinosaur” Another Pixar Winner!

Howdy Folks!  It’s The Kendog!

Some Hungry T-Rexes In Pixar’s “The Good Dinosaur”

Pixar has a tremendous track record as an animation studio.  Of all of the features they’ve made, only one is considered “Rotten” on Rotten Tomatoes (It’s “Cars 2” in case anyone is interested.  For my part, I find that movie to be very underrated) and so far it’s continued with “Inside Out” which qualifies as one of the best movies of the year.  While “The Good Dinosaur” doesn’t quite reach the heights of this summer’s offering, it is still a fine, emotionally poignant addition to the Pixar canon.

“The Good Dinosaur” imagines a world where the meteor that killed the dinosaurs sixty-five million years ago missed, allowing the dinos to evolve into their own society.  A family of Apatosaurs led by Poppa (Jeffery Wright) and Mama (Francis McDormand) run a farm with the help of their three children.  While Buck and Libby are strong, fearless, and willing to help, young Arlo is having issues controlling his fear.  It doesn’t help that he’s the runt of the family, making him frightened of his own shadow.  When an attempt to get rid of a pest eating their grain results in Arlo getting swept downriver, he must learn to marshal his courage and get back home, all with the help of said pest, a human child who acts more like a wild animal.

To tell you anymore would be to deny you the various joys of “The Good Dinosaur.”  This movie isn’t as thematically ambitious as “Inside Out” but its relatively straightforward story (from a screenplay by “Inside Out” writer Meg LeFauve) is filled with emotional depth and humor.  This is very much a boy and his dog type of story, only with the novel idea of having the boy be the dog.  Arlo and the boy (who he names “Spot”) must traverse the wilds as Arlo tries to get back home, facing hostile weather and a variety of would-be predators, including a group of Pterosaurs lead by the slightly off-his-rocker Thunderclap (Steve Zahn).  Arlo and Spot also run into a family of Tyrannosaurs, but instead of being vicious killers, in this world they are ranchers who need help protecting their herd from marauding velociraptor rustlers.  Fittingly enough, the leader of the Tyrannosaurs is voiced by cowboy acting legend Sam Elliot.

The voice-work is stellar and the story is quite moving, but the animation is the star of the show here.  The backgrounds are so photorealistic that when the slightly cartoonish dinos arrive it’s a bit distracting at first, but as the movie continues they fit so perfectly with the environment that it no longer becomes an issue.  First-time feature director Peter Sohn does a terrific job mixing all of these elements into a rich, tasty, cinematic stew.

If I had any issue with “The Good Dinosaur” it’s that the pacing flags just a bit at times, though I must confess I was still trying to recover from my Thanksgiving coma and that might have had something to do with my drooping eyelids, but it’s a small complaint in any case.  Between “The Peanuts Movie” and this one, families are in for a great time at the movies in the coming months.  4 ½ Out Of 5 On Kendog’s Barkometer!  So Sayeth The Kendog!

“The Good Dinosaur” is Rated PG for peril, action and thematic elements.