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‘Finding Dory’ Reviews Tell How Pixar’s New King Among Kids Movies Makes Spectacular Splash

By Colin Fredericson
Published on: 05:32 PST, Jun 16, 2016

Finding Dory reviews have positively proven that Pixar took the correct road with this spinoff. Dory was the cute little fish with memory loss that caught some peripheral laughs in Finding Nemo. Now that she’s the center of attention, her story somewhat mirrors Nemo’s, but then departs from it as the movie heads into new settings with new groups of characters and new cast members.

If you love kids movies and want to see the animated film fresh on its official opening day, you can skip this article. If you don’t mind coming to the theater armed with a little bit of knowledge, please read on.

As Vox reports, Dory’s sidekick in this movie is an octopus played by Ed O’Neill. As Hank, his sullen demeanor is re-energized by Ellen DeGeneres’s Dory. The two work well together and provide believable interest and character growth.

Other standouts that find themselves in the movie include Dominic West and Idris Elba, who play seals with cockney accents. Then there is the shark played by Kaitlin Olsen that showers cuteness upon her interactions with both Dory and a beluga whale friend played by Ty Burrell from Modern Family. This plunges Dory into a world of lovable characters as she looks for her parents.

Vox also talks about how Finding Nemo was a perfectly self-contained movie, but Finding Dory still manages to build off of that and create something really interesting.

“Finding Nemo didn’t need a sequel. Pixar’s 2003 feature film about a lost clownfish and his paranoid dad wasn’t just a technological feat of animation, set within a vivid world full of brightly hued coral reefs and expressive creatures swimming through undulating blue waters. It was also a gorgeous tale of family, loss, and discovery that seemed to have a clear ending, one that left no narrative threads hanging in its wake.”

The New York Times Finding Dory review does smack the movie for being unoriginal and perhaps predictable, but still says that doesn’t take away from the impact the film has. What the movie lacks in originality it makes up for in heart. Although the focus shifts from Nemo to Dory, with Nemo playing second fiddle, there is still a parallel in storyline, but the difference in character traits that are brought out make for a different feel.

Dory isn’t Nemo. Dory has a different set of issues. Dory has to seriously deal with her memory loss. She has to overcome the challenges from within herself, not just from the world outside. Perhaps as a reflection of her mental state, the movie is brisker. The same writer from Finding Nemo returns to write this one, and could perhaps find unique tangents for future kids movies involving any of the interesting characters here.

Although The New York Times doesn’t think this is one of the best Pixar movies, it certainly thinks it’s one of the better ones.

“Now Dory has her own movie, imaginatively called Finding Dory, a merchandising opportunity for Disney and a welcome end-of-the-school-year diversion for parents and children. While it may not join the top tier of Pixar features, Dory, directed by Andrew Stanton and Angus MacLane, is certainly the best non-Toy Story sequel the studio has produced. That may sound like faint praise given the startling mediocrity of Monsters University and Cars 2, but what Dory lacks in dazzling originality it more than makes up for in warmth, charm and good humor.”

So they do see it as an attempt for more merchandising dollars but still acknowledge the merits of the movie in its own right. Most other Finding Dory reviews are positive, finding a fun, wholesome story. The movie officially opens tomorrow, June 17.

[Image via Pixar]

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