22nd June 2012
When I saw the Brave
trailer a few months ago, I was honestly very disappointed. I realized
Merida's character design was beautiful, especially her hair and the
change in the generic facial structure of disney/pixar characters, but
besides her, the other characters resembled the characters from How to
train your dragon. A lot. Sure, they were scottish with the skirts and
the accents, but the features and the designs looked as different as
those in HTTYD when it released. Also I was not too happy with Pixar
making princess movies. All those pre-judgements kept aside, I went into
the theatre to be overjoyed with the film.
THE PLUSES
There are a countless number of things I loved about it.
Story and Design
The
first thing I would say is the storyboarding. Everything was so well
choreographed! The introduction of the immense Scottish highlands, the
castle and its grasslands, the woods, the character actions really helps
the audience follow the story. It created a mystery throughout the
film.
Coming to the story, a lot is always expected from a studio
like Pixar which has created and brought us films like Ratatouille, Toy
Story, Wall-E, Monsters Inc., Finding Nemo and Up. So, naturally we
expect nothing but excellence. The story was usual until half of it was
over - you expect a prince to come in somewhere, but there is no prince.
There is no clichéd romance, instead a very unspoken relationship
between Merida and her mother is suggested.
As far as design is
concerned, a lot more could be explored, but since it worked, there was
no need for that! All the character designs shouted out the
personalities of the characters! The parents, the brothers, and even the
stupid princes and their fathers! I was so glad the horse didn't look
Disneyish.
Also, I absolutely loved the Score and the songs sung - they really brought in another dimension to the film.
Animation:
There're
no second thoughts about this - all the gags and the acting is
extremely well done and believable. We can expect nothing less from
Pixar animators!
THE MINUS
What
I didn't understand is the core of the film. Was it about
choosing/changing your fate, about her relationship with her mother or
about accepting each other for who we are? If there was emphasis on one
particular subject then the audience could have taken back something.
Since the core is unclear, we take back bits and pieces. We are
entertained, but it doesn't touch our heart and stay with us.
Also initially the scottish accent was very distracting and at times changed the tone of the film.
A lot of critiques mentioned that this film didn't
have a specific target audience - well, I cannot understand why there
should be one as a rule! This film is enjoyed by all age groups. So is a
film like 'Up'.
I guess that's all I have to say about
Brave. I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it and hats off to all the
talent and the effort put in! Loved the story, the gags, the action and
the emotion. I actually cried at the climax. :'( (yes I am an emotional
individual) Go for it guys!
