Queen Eleanor is infatuated with tradition and feels she knows what’s best for a young princess. But her mother has quite a different vision for her. Merida is an adventurous free spirit who loves archery and riding her horse through the countryside with her long, bright red locks of hair flowing in the wind. This gorgeous landscape is the home of a young princess-to-be named Merida who lives with her brave but playful father King Fergus and her stern and often times overbearing mother Queen Elinor. Tall trees, grassy meadows, jagged mountains, and beautiful streams grab us and submerge us into this beautiful land. The film creates a breathtaking natural canvas that quickly places us within the story’s location and environment. Even though I knew it was animated, I was amazed by the huge, sprawling, panoramic shots of the Scottish Highlands. The first thing it does is give us a true sense of location via some of the greatest uses of scenery and surroundings I have seen. “Brave”starts off with the perfect approach. This tried and true formula once again really pays off here even for a tepid animation guy like me. They hire the perfect voice talent, create beautiful visuals, and throw in some fantastic music. They take meatier subject matter and cover it with a beautiful and playful animated wrapping. Once again Pixar gives us another solid animated feature mainly by following their proven formula. That knack is once again on display with “Brave”. But even I can appreciate their amazing knack for good quality storytelling. Me, I’m not the biggest animated movie guy. Brave it is not.Does anyone even question the amazing filmmaking that comes out of Pixar Studios anymore? Well, “Cars 2” didn’t do them any favors, but still Pixar has evolved into one of the most impressive filmmaking teams in cinema. Because for all these breakthroughs, Brave feels hopelessly safe, less a Pixar trailblazer than yet another entry in the Disney princess line of films and products. And it’s these firsts, combined with a charming atmosphere and layers of genuine heart, that make you want to love Brave more than you actually do. It was, at one point, also the studio’s first movie directed by a woman. Then again, Rapunzel has a supernice head of hair too.” However she praises Brave‘s star “Merida is active instead of passive, a doer rather than a gal who hangs around the castle waiting for Prince Charming to rescue her.”ĭrew Taylor from Indiewire calls the movie “A powerful but wobbly feminist fairy tale,” adding, “it’s the studio’s first period piece, their first fairy tale, and their first film led by a female character. New York Times‘ Manohla Dargis compares heroine Merida to Disney’s princess Rapunzel, saying “There’s so much beauty, so much untamed animation in this hair that it makes Merida look like a hothead, a rebel, the little princess who wouldn’t and didn’t. Los Angeles Times‘ Kenneth Turan points out that “ Brave simply doesn’t feel as much like the Pixar movies we’ve come to expect,” and she added, “Given that Brave does break new ground by being the first Pixar film to feature a female protagonist, that feeling of over-familiarity comes as a surprise.” Younger kids won’t mind, but many viewers accustomed to relying upon Pixar for something special will feel a sense of letdown due to the lack of adventurousness.” The Hollywood Reporter‘s Todd McCarthy says “ Brave might disappoint many ardent Pixar loyalists while simultaneously delighting old-time Disney fans,” pointing out that “for all its pictorial and vocal beauty, the film’s emotional line and dramatic contrivances are both more familiar and less inventive than what’s usually delivered by. Read below for some of the reviews from the top critics:
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