Rating: A
Before I even begin to talk about Finding Dory, I NEED to yell about about adorable and flawlessly animated “Piper”. This was the short before the feature film and sends the very simple message of facing your fears and learning from others. The animation was so gorgeously done with perfect lighting and textures to make it look like it was real but still uphold the wonder and magic that animation delivers. This was by far my favourite short out of the Pixar catalogue.
Anyway, onto the fish. Obviously, the animation is astounding and the movements and behaviours of the species are executed meticulously; one scene of Hank the Octopus’ animation took two years to complete. I’ve seen Finding Nemo approximately 37 times and so quoting it comes as second nature to me, and I still find it hilarious to this day. Upon the first viewing of Finding Dory, I didn’t find much of the dialogue immediately memorable, but I’m sure if I watch it enough times the hilarity will come through stronger.
Another thing that is done superbly is flashback storytelling where Dory recollects memories of her youth in an attempt to find clues on the whereabouts of her family, even though baby Dory is a little bug-eyed and creepy, the voice acting is adorable. I must mention how beautifully handled Dory’s disability is: her short term memory loss is never made fun of, and in flashbacks her parents are constantly reassuring her of her positivity and strength. The characters she meets on her adventure are equally as kind, and it isn’t used as a punchline.
However, there are two characters, Becky and Gerald, who are made into stereotypical “idiot for comic relief” characters, with exaggerated features and zero dialogue, bullied for their “oddness”. This left a really sour taste in mouth, especially since the whole film is trying to champion the opposite, adding these two characters in for cheap laughs seemed really irrelevant in the wider scope of the film.