Finding Nemo

Voices of: Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Allison Janney, Stephen Root, Geoffrey Rush, Eric Bana, Andrew Stanton
Directed by: Andrew Stanton, Lee Unkrich
Rating: G
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
2003

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: After his son, Nemo (Alexander Gould) is taken by a diver, Marlin (Albert Brooks) crosses the ocean, trying to get him back.

Review:

Tim: Finding Nemo is a good movie, but I don't think it belongs in the upper echelon of Pixar movies. I know that many people love this movie, and while I think it's a solid film, I think it has a few flaws which prevent it from being as good as it could have been. It doesn't have the same emotional impact as a Wall-E, even though it tries pretty hard.

At the heart of this film, this is about the relationship between a father and a son. That's the real emotional center of this film, and it sneaks up on you. While it isn't especially powerful on an emotional level, it's still a nice story at its heart. This is what Pixar is terrific at- creating stories with heart that have more depth than the average animated film. The other animation studios would be wise to try and replicate Pixar's ability in this area. This gives the film more depth than normal.

The movie title talks about Nemo, but the movie is more about his father, Marlin. Nemo does have some good scenes, and his story in the dentist fish tank is legitimately interesting. I wish that he had a bit more screen time. While his attempts to break out are important to the film, the real heart of the story comes from Marlin's attempt to traverse the ocean to save his son. I thought Pixar did a very good job of showing Marlin's eventual transformation, but doing so in a restrained, quiet way. They let a character go through growth and development without screaming "Look how much he's changed!" like a lot of films would do. I thought Marlin's growth seemed natural and believable. It's pretty fascinating to think about how he evolves from a fish scared to do anything into a fish who risks his life multiple times on various adventures to reach his son.

That journey is pretty entertaining to see. Marlin encounters a host of friendly and dangerous sea creatures. The different characters are all unique and interesting in their own way. They move the film along as we wonder what each is about and whether they will help or hinder Marlin in his quest. We get sharks, turtles, fish, and much more. The closest companion is obviously Dory. Dory feels like a polarizing character to me. The first time I saw this film, I could barely stand her. She just seemed so stupid and such a weak female character. She really got on my nerves and annoyed me. On subsequent viewings, I warmed up to her a bit, but I still feel like she's one of the weaker Pixar characters.

I felt like the film had some odd scenes, too. The shark scene just felt a bit too weird- there's a support group for sharks who don't want to eat fish? Okay, what do they eat? And, the weirdest thing of all is that they meet in a sunken submarine, which lays smack dab in a giant minefield. Why is this in the film? It just felt out of place to me, and I really struggled with these scenes.

The movie does a very good job of creating some memorable, entertaining characters. Marlin comes to life through the impressive voice work of Albert Brooks. I really thought he did a good job in the film. Alexander Gould was good as Nemo, but he wasn't particularly memorable. Ellen DeGeneres did good voice work as Dory, but she was annoying, as I mentioned. I really liked hearing Willem Dafoe- I only wish he had more screen time. There's really a surprising number of characters in this film, each who feel different and unique in their own sense.

I really did like Finding Nemo, but I didn't think it was a great movie. I think it has a number of flaws and overall, didn't deliver the emotional impact it should have. (Spoiler Alert)- the reunion of Nemo and Marlin felt a bit clumsy and seemed like it was fumbled. This should have been a terrific moment where we quickly wipe a tear away from our eye and hope no one saw. That doesn't happen at all. The reunion is rushed and they're on to a forced, silly final climax where Pixar misses the mark by being too obvious about the change in the relationship between Marlin and Nemo. Up to this point, the changes in both of them were visible but not overly apparent. Pixar needed to trust the audience more, that we would recognize the transformation.

This is a good movie, but I don't believe it is among the best films Pixar has created. It could have been better. Still, this should still be considered yet another Pixar success.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 7



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Ratatouille, Wall-E, Toy Story, Cars