Movie Madness

This feature has slipped a bit in the last few weeks; I haven't watched many new films what with the Olympics, being outside enjoying the sunshine and holidays to Australia! 🙂

However, Mark and I took advantage of Cheap Tuesdays at Vue this week to go and see "Brave", the new Pixar movie.

"BRAVE"

Merida is a skilled archer and impetuous daughter of King Fergus (Billy Connolly) and Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson). Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the uproarious lords of the land: massive Lord MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), surly Lord Macintosh (Craig Ferguson) and cantankerous Lord Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane). Merida's actions inadvertently unleash chaos and fury in the kingdom, and when she turns to an eccentric old Witch (Julie Walters) for help, she is granted an ill-fated wish. The ensuing peril forces Merida to discover the meaning of true bravery in order to undo a beastly curse before it's too late. -- (C) Disney

Brave is the first film Pixar have created with a female lead as well as being the first period piece, which definitely gives it a fresh feel. The story follows some fairly predictable themes however, and is aimed at a younger audience than some of Pixar's previous works- there are less "adult" jokes, or elements that would keep an older viewer entertained. Having said that, there were some laugh-out-loud moments particularly involving Merida's three cute funny little brothers.

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Brave has some amazing scenery backgrounds, set in the beautiful landscapes of Scotland and the characters themselves are also well rendered. This is especially evident in the great CGI hair on Merida, with over 1500 strands of curls individually created- the level of attention to detail on a par with Sully's fur in Monsters Inc. It's also interesting to note that this film took 6 years to make with many changes occurring along the way- originally 80% of the story was set in the snow! The film also has a really good soundtrack, created by Patrick Doyle, the Scottish composer, which perfectly fits the action.

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Brave follows the story of a wilful teenager clashing with her stubborn mother - something most people can relate to! It is a little clichéd and at times overly pushes the moral of the story in your face, with the ending a little more "Disney" than Pixar. The story was quite predictable to me, but again I believe it would be great for younger children, being more childlike in it's delivery.

In all Brave is a beautiful film, with a storyline that whilst not bad by any means, is definitely not up to the level of some of Pixar's genius creations- 7/10