The Good Dinosaur

When Pixar films are just "okay" they are still far better than most animated films around. After achieving critical and commercial success with their psychologically complex "Inside Out" early this summer, the studio returns with a simpler and smaller tale about a young, awkward dinosaur looking to make his mark. Literally.

"The Good Dinosaur" is another in a long line of Disney-made and/or produced animated films that deal with a child losing a parent. Similarly to when Simba lost his dad to a stampede, this time a young Apatosaurus named Arlo (voiced by Raymond Ochoa) loses his Poppa (Jeffrey Wright) to a flash flood. This is only after Poppa has urged his son to find his way and make his mark in the world by doing something great. While his brother Buck (Marcus Scribner) and sister Libby (Maleah Nipay-Padilla) have already made theirs, Arlo is a timid and unsure young dinosaur that desperately needs to learn to have confidence in himself. It is during one of these "teachable" moments that father and son trek out during a particularly nasty storm and tragedy strikes.

This all occurs because Arlo is trying to catch whatever "critter" is eating their corn rations. You see, the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs according to history books doesn't happen in the world of "The Good Dinosaur." Because of this, dinosaurs have begun to evolve. They learn to farm, tie knots, and wrangle entire herds of buffalo. That also means that "critters" aren't always of the furry variety. Sometimes they are human -- because dinosaurs have survived long enough for the two species to live at the same time. And one of these little humans is eating their corn.

After Poppa dies and the family is struggling to keep the farm on its feet, Arlo runs into the little critter again and angrily chases after him. This causes both to fall into a river and be carried far away from home. As a result, the two must learn to work together in order to find their way back. Naming him "Spot," Arlo and his reluctant new buddy suffer all sorts of scary adventures, meet new friends, and come to a greater understanding of who they are and what they need from each other. It's a story similar to "E.T" in that it is about two beings from different worlds that enter a friendship that will change them for the rest of their lives.

Plot-wise there is nothing particularly new here, and the story beats are fairly obvious, but that's okay for a children's movie. And while most Pixar films walk the line between being a kid's movie and one that can easily be appreciated and enjoyed by adults, this one skews a bit younger. It's perfectly entertaining for the older crowd, for sure. Pixar certainly knows how to entertain. But it's sort of the opposite of "Inside Out" where that film was disguised as a children's movie, but ended up being more adult than anyone expected. Here, Pixar has crafted a genuinely entertaining and delightful children's film that has a good message and enough charm to soften even the hardest of holiday hearts.