Pixar has made some great movies, but a lot of people seemed skeptical about Finding Dory. Could a sequel 13 years in the making pull an audience? My wife, daughter, and I went to see the Finding Dory and had a great time. Finding Dory is a Must See movie.
Finding Dory…wait, what was I saying?
One year after the events of Finding Nemo, Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) suddenly remembers the family that she lost as a baby fish. Dory sets out to find her mom, Jenny (Diane Keaton), and dad, Charlie (Eugene Levy), with the help of Marlin (Albert Brooks) and Nemo (Hayden Rolence).
Pixar has a pipeline to my heart and funny bone. Finding Dory manages to bring lots of funny moments as well as the traditional heartfelt ones. DeGeneres really brings a lot of personality to the blue tang. Her short-term memory loss is a comedic plot device that didn’t get old. It’s an endearing personality quirk that really makes you care about Dory.
Marlin and Nemo are back…
Marlin and Nemo are relevant, but definitely take a back seat to make way for new characters. Hank (Ed O’Neill), the octopus, is a great new edition to the cast. His time on-screen was easily some of my favorite moments. Destiny (Kaitlin Olson) the whale shark and Bailey (Ty Burrell) the beluga whale were also great and managed to tie in some moments from the first film.
In fact, this film manages to be its own story while making plenty of references and even elaborating on plot points in Finding Nemo. Dory’s ability to speak whale comes up again and it’s pretty funny. The premise is similar to the first film, but it does it differently enough that it feels new. Of course there are still jokes that are rehashed.
Instead of the seagulls and their chanting of “mine,” this film features sea lions barking, “off.” It would be easy for that joke to fall flat, but it actually was one of my favorite moments in the film. Much like the first film, the cast of characters that help the heroes on their journey are memorable. Make sure to stay all the way through the credits for a bonus scene that fans will love.
People doubted Pixar, and who could blame them as not all of their sequels have been winners. However, they really managed to create a movie that lives up to the first. If you’re a fan of Finding Nemo you may love Finding Dory just as much, but I think I may have loved it more.
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