Don’t forget that the latest animated feature from Pixar Animation Studios, Brave, will open on Friday June 22nd. I was lucky enough to be invited to see a preview last night. I’ll have a full review later (I want to see it again, because I know I missed some stuff) but here are some of my initial impressions.
This is not like any other Pixar film you’ve seen (although there are some similarities to Finding Nemo) but at the same time it is very much a Pixar film. The quality of original stories, told from the heart, with real emotion and incredible artistry are signature moves of Pixar. All of that is present and more.
For those who worried the trailers give it all away, trust me, they don’t. There are a lot of layers to this film that the trailers don’t even touch. Instead, the marketing has been just enough to set up the a conflict between Princess Merida’s vision for future and her mother’s plans. As a man, there’s probably some stuff I’m missing in that relationship, but I still found it compelling.
There might be a little more foreshadowing than usual and the fairytale nature of the film is a first for Pixar, but I found myself emotionally involved in the character’s fate as much as they were just like every other Pixar film (excepting perhaps Cars 2). There were plenty of clever moments, some comic relief that felt very classic Disney (a good thing!), and a few scenes of very intense scary stuff. The scary stuff might be too intense for the youngest children, Brave is rated PG because of it.
Merida and the characters of Brave are still echoing in my head. I know this film will grow on me with repeated viewings too.