Finding Dory Review

It's hard to believe that Finding Nemo is actually 13 years old. There's every chance that today's 18 year olds, about to start university and drink themselves silly, were once fresh faced 5 year olds sitting down to take in their first film at the cinema. Pixar aren't usually in the business of making sequels, director Andrew Stanton has said that sequels need to have a natural story progression for them to be worthwhile coming back, and Finding Nemo has the unexplained story of a forgetful blue tang called Dory.

Set 2 years after Marlin's and Dory's adventure across the ocean to rescue Nemo after he had been kidnapped, or should that be fishnapped? Finding Dory sees Dory living with Marlin and Nemo, only she's starting to remember things, and she's remembered that she has a family and so sets out to find them at the California based Aquatic Park she thinks they're at.

The animation from Pixar is every bit as extraordinary as you expect it to be, and the ocean based setting allows them to flourish in the design. Returning characters from the first outing play just as strong and there is a real talent in how the voice performances match the animated performance. Despite this being a sequel this isn't a case of running out the whole gang from the first one, despite a brief appearance from Crush the sea turtle, instead the film welcomes a whole bunch of new players. Brits Idris Elba and Dominic West lend their voices to 2 cockney Sea Lions called Fluke and Rudder, they're lazy but also incredibly possessive of the rock they lie on, their cry of “off, off, off” is the “my, my, my” of this film. Then there's Ty Burrell as a beluga whale with damaged sonar and Kaitlin Olson's near sighted whale shark called Destiny, when you know that the two actors probably never had a chance to meet each other, it makes the chemistry the characters have all the more impressive. The there's Ed O'neill's Hank the octopus, or septopus as Dory humorously points out given his missing tentacle. He's a wonderfully animated character and it’s a consistent visual delight the way he flops around and camouflages into scenery, but he's a bit too nasty to really enjoy, yes there is the obvious nice epiphany at the end, but it doesn't make his abrasiveness any more enjoyable.

Pixar are the number one animators in cinema, not just because of what they do in terms of pushing animation, but because of what they do with story. The moments featuring an adorably cute baby Dory are some of the most emotional you'll see this year. The film succeeds in given so much weight to Dory's disability which has previously only been a comedic side note. Seeing Dory's parents helping her cope with her memory loss and making sure that she will be able to make it in the world is utterly heart-breaking, and it transcends the film from mere fun animation. The film has a positive message throughout that disabilities don't have to hold you back, it doesn't matter if its Hank's missing tentacle, Nemo's lucky fin or Destiny's near sightedness all of them have something to offer. Last year’s Inside Out showed that they could confidently tackle questions other film makers had struggled with for years, and in Finding Dory they show that you can make a film just as affecting for adults as it is fun for children without having to make nods and winks to things children won’t get.

After a beautifully played emotional denouement to the film it feels a little frustrating that it then slips into an entertaining but fairly simple and not very Pixar climax, but the work they'd put into that point means that they've earned themselves that ending.

This isn't quite as transcendental or original as last year's Inside Out, but Finding Dory is a very worthy sequel and shows that on their day there are few that can conjure the magic of Pixar. (Low 5 Stars)