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"Brave" is the latest animated film from Pixar, and therefore becomes the film the parents of the world will be dragged to by their kids. The good news is that the kids will probably love it, and the bad news is that parents will be disappointed if they're hoping for another Pixar groundbreaker. Unlike such brightly original films as " Toy Story ," " Finding Nemo ," "WALL-E" and " Up ," this one finds Pixar poaching on traditional territory of Disney, its corporate partner. We get a spunky princess; her mum, the queen; her dad, the gruff king, an old witch who lives in the woods, and so on.

The princess is Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald), seen in an action-packed prologue as a flame-haired Scottish tomboy whose life is changed by an early birthday gift of a bow, which quickly inspires her to become the best archer in the kingdom. Then we flash forward to Merida as a young lady of marriageable age, who is startled by request from Queen Elinor ( Emma Thompson ) to choose among three possible husbands chosen by her clan.

Nothing doing, especially since all three candidates are doofuses. Merida leaps upon her trusty steed and flees into the forest, where her friends the will-o-the-wisps lead her to the cottage of a gnarled old witch ( Julie Walters ). She begs for a magic spell that will change Queen Elinor's mind, but it changes more than that: It turns Elinor into a bear. Witches never know how to stop when they're ahead.

Luckily, the magic spell comes with an escape clause. Merida has exactly two days to reverse the charm. After she and her mother absorb what has happened, they begin to work together and grow closer than ever, even though the queen cannot speak. There is a tricky complication. King Fergus ( Billy Connolly ) had his leg bitten off by a bear (in the prologue), and has been indisposed toward them ever since. Unsurprisingly, when he sees his wife as a bear, he fails to recognize her.

And so on. This is a great-looking movie, much enlivened by the inspiration of giving Merida three small brothers, little redheaded triplets. The Scottish Highlands are thrillingly painted in astonishing detail, and some action shows Merida's archery more than equal in assorted emergencies.

"Brave" has an uplifting message about improving communication between mothers and daughters, although transforming your mom into a bear is a rather extreme first step. Elinor is a good sport, under the circumstances. But Merida is far from being a typical fairy-tale princess. Having flatly rejected the three suitors proposed by her family, she is apparently prepared to go through life quite happily without a husband, and we can imagine her in later years, a weathered and indomitable Amazon queen, sort of a Boudica for the Scots. "Brave" seems at a loss to deal with her as a girl and makes her a sort of honorary boy.

Roger Ebert

Roger Ebert was the film critic of the Chicago Sun-Times from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, he won the Pulitzer Prize for distinguished criticism.

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Film credits.

Brave (2012)

Rated PG for some scary action and rude humor

Kelly MacDonald as Merida

Billy Connolly as Fergus

Emma Thompson as Elinor

Robbie Coltrane as Dingwall

Craig Ferguson as Macintosh

Kevin McKidd as MacGuffin

Julie Walters as The Witch

Steve Purcell
Irene Mecchi

Directed by

Mark Andrews
Brenda Chapman

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Pixar has fashioned a poignant tribute to mother-daughter relationships.

By Peter Debruge

Peter Debruge

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Walt Disney began his feature career with a princess story. Now Pixar gives princesses a go after making a dozen other toons, and though the studio brings its usual level of perfectionism and heart to the assignment, “ Brave ” seems a wee bit conventional by comparison with, say, how radically “The Incredibles” reinvented the superhero genre — not that Pixar’s eager international following will object. Adding a female director to its creative boys’ club, the studio has fashioned a resonant tribute to mother-daughter relationships that packs a level of poignancy on par with such beloved male-bonding classics as “Finding Nemo.”

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Voiced with verve by Scottish actress Kelly Macdonald , young Merida takes after her father, King Fergus (comedian Billy Connolly), still nursing a grudge against the bear that ate his leg. A defiantly independent lass, Merida prefers archery and horseback riding to the dainty yet dull pursuits taught by her ladylike queen mother, Elinor (Emma Thompson), resulting in many a royal scolding.

The film breezes through most of Merida’s upbringing to find conflict on the eve of her betrothal, when Elinor somehow manages to surprise her daughter with the news that the clan believes in arranged marriage. As far as Merida is concerned, she doesn’t need a man to live happily ever after — a novel concept in the relatively narrow world of cartoon logic, and one that allows the movie to do without a lowly stable boy or other replacement love interest. And so Merida upstages her suitors before running away into the woods alone.

For a girl distrustful of tradition, Merida is quick to put her faith in the ancient forest spirits, following a series of glowing blue will-o’-the-wisps to the door of a witch’s cottage. Had Merida only watched more Disney movies as a girl, she never would have made her next mistake. Naive in the ways of magic, she asks for a spell that will change Elinor’s mind, receiving instead an enchanted cake that transforms her mother into a giant black bear — that most endangered of species in Fergus’ ursine-averse kingdom.

“Brave” may not be a romance, but it is most certainly a love story, using this enchanted device to explore the dynamic between Merida and her mother. Thompson brings deep reserves of empathy to the film’s less obvious but equally strong female role model, matched by a number of touching, nonverbally protective actions after she takes on bear form. The animation is at its best when allowing Elinor’s character to shine through her awkward new shape.

Merida has two days to undo her mistake before the change becomes permanent, but by this point, the film has become just another fairy tale, and only the youngest of children will be surprised by what follows. Familiar though its elements may be, “Brave” feels quite different from earlier Pixar films, demonstrating a refreshing versatility in an oeuvre that was starting to look a bit staid, especially as sequels overtook the slate.

Behind the scenes, Brenda Chapman began the project and retains a directing credit, though Mark Andrews reportedly stepped in around October 2010. However the duties may have been split, the resulting film appears darker and more intricate than anything the studio has attempted before, from the richly textured Highlands cliffs to the individually rendered curls of Merida’s burning-bush hair.

Musically, gone are Randy Newman’s folksy tone and Michael Giacchino’s infectious pep, making room for a different signature from Scottish composer Patrick Doyle . When Merida needs some alone time, the soundtrack offers lovely ballads by Gaelic folk singer Julie Fowlis, but in nearly all other moments, Doyle’s dynamic bagpipe and strings arrangements swarm into action.

That energy reinforces the film’s restless, almost agitated spirit, further mirrored by virtual 3D cameras that swoop and race through the meticulously conceived environments. While elaborate attention was clearly paid in designing this tale’s belligerent gents (with amusing voicework by the likes of Connolly, Robbie Coltrane and Craig Ferguson), Merida and Elinor appear to be its two least detailed characters. Yet Merida’s wild red mane more than compensates for any personality absent from her expressions.

The toon “Brave” most resembles is DreamWorks’ “How to Train Your Dragon,” offering the flipside of that pic’s sensitive-boy predicament in its adventure-seeking heroine. An interesting study could be made in contrasting the two studios’ approaches, no doubt, and yet celebrating their respective accomplishments drives home how far both have come since the year when “A Bug’s Life” and “Antz” bowed opposite one another.

As an added treat, “Brave” is preceded by Enrico Casarosa’s Oscar-nominated short, “La luna,” adding seven minutes to the running time of Pixar’s shortest feature since “Monsters, Inc.”

Production: A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures release of a Disney presentation of a Pixar Animation Studios production. Produced by Katherine Sarafian. Executive producers, John Lasseter, Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter. Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman. Co-director, Steve Purcell. Screenplay, Andrews, Purcell, Chapman, Irene Mecchi; story, Chapman.
Crew: Camera (Deluxe color, widescreen, 3D), Robert Anderson; editor, Micholas C. Smith; music, Patrick Doyle; music supervisor, Tom MacDougall; production designer, Steve Pilcher; art directors, Matt Nolte (characters), Noah Klocek (sets), Tia Wallace Kratter (shading); story supervisor, Brian Larsen; supervising technical directors, Bill Wise, Steve May; supervising animators, Alan Barillaro, Steven Clay Hunter; sound designer (Dolby 7.1 Surround/Datasat), Gary Rydstrom; supervising sound editor, Gwendolyn Yates Whittle; re-recording mixers, Rydstrom, Tom Johnson; effects supervisor, David MacCarthy; stereoscopic supervisor, Bob Whitehill; associate producer, Mary Alice Drumm; casting, Kevin Reher, Natalie Lyon. Reviewed at Disney Studios, Burbank, June 9, 2012. (In Los Angeles Film Festival -- Galas.) MPAA Rating: PG. Running time: 100 MIN.
With: Merida - Kelly Macdonald Fergus - Billy Connolly Elinor - Emma Thompson The Witch - Julie Walters Lord Dingwall - Robbie Coltrane Lord MacGuffin - Kevin McKidd Lord Macintosh - Craig Ferguson Maudie - Sally Kinghom, Eilidh Fraser

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In 'Brave,' A Pixar Princess At Odds With Her Place

Scott Tobias

Merida, the heroine in Pixar's Brave , causes much family drama by refusing to get married — and acting more like her father, King Fergus, than a "proper princess." Disney/Pixar hide caption

Directors: Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
Genre: Family, Animation, Comedy
Running Time: 93 minutes

Rated PG for some scary action and rude humor

With: Kelly Macdonald, Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Julie Walters, Kevin McKidd

Watch Clips

'The Suitors'

Credit: Disney/Pixar

'Merida Shoots'

'Advice To Elinor'

Not since Walt Disney's heyday has an animation company enjoyed a creative — and technically innovative — run like Pixar, now on a two-decade stretch that started with Toy Story in 1995 and continued with modern classics like Finding Nemo , Monsters Inc. , The Incredibles , WALL-E , Ratatouille and two Toy Story sequels that took on improbable depth and complexity. Over the years, the only persistent knock against Pixar is its lack of one thing Disney movies had in spades: female heroines.

With the vibrant Scottish adventure Brave , the company sets about solving that political problem by offering a distinctly 21st-century princess — strong and rebellious, swift with a bow and uncompromising in her quest for self-determination. Yet they've also solved the problem the Pixar way, which means family comes first, whether it's the surrogate bonds of Cars and Toy Story or the close-knit units of Finding Nemo and The Incredibles . Everything that's good about Brave — beyond the expected eye candy, anyway — stems from the push and pull between the princess' ambition and the demands of family tradition. Pixar may specialize in reinventing genres and creating new worlds, but this theme draws from a vast emotional reserve.

But there's a lot that isn't good about Brave , too, or at least that's woefully conventional by Pixar standards. Beyond the strong core relationship between Merida (voiced by Kelly Macdonald), the film's frisky Celtic princess, and her equally iron-willed mother, Elinor (voiced by Emma Thompson), Brave creates a universe that's beautifully rendered yet thinly imagined, with rote mythology and a wealth of lowbrow gags. At its worst, it would be tempting to say that Pixar is playing on rival DreamWorks' turf — all one-liners and blocky character designs — if DreamWorks hadn't stepped up its game recently with Kung Fu Panda and How to Train Your Dragon .

With an unruly shock of red hair that makes a statement well before she opens her mouth, Merida has more in common with her father, King Fergus (voiced by Billy Connolly), a man of lusty appetites, than her mother, who asserts a quieter power that's rooted more in wisdom than in brute force. When Merida comes of age, Elinor surprises her with the news that suitors from three different clans will compete for her hand in marriage, an arrangement Merida rejects as thoroughly as her mother's lessons on proper etiquette.

Like many a fairy tale princess, Merida flees to an enchanted forest and comes upon a witch, but the spell she hopes will change her mother's mind has unintended consequences. Viewers are better off discovering what happens to Elinor for themselves; suffice it to say that Merida's mother will finally be forced to listen to her for once.

Merida and her mother, Queen Elinor, spar over their very different ideas about what most becomes a princess. Disney/Pixar hide caption

Merida and her mother, Queen Elinor, spar over their very different ideas about what most becomes a princess.

The mother-daughter scenes in Brave have a marvelous tension that turns from dramatic to deftly comic when the spell takes effect and transforms Elinor completely. And the issues between them are not trivial: Granting her daughter the freedom she craves — freedom from all men, not just princes — isn't a simple case of Elinor getting hip to changing times, but a threat to the tenuous peace between clans. For Merida, part of growing up is understanding that personal fulfillment isn't the only consideration, but something that has to be reconciled with the needs of those closest to you.

Brave hits on this powerful message eventually, but it gets there by way of run-of-the-mill plotting and strained attempts at comic relief, from the shenanigans of Merida's three trouble-making little brothers to the bungling oafs in the other clans. The future of Merida's kingdom depends on her family's sustaining a fragile relationship with their neighbors; turning the latter into lovable half-wits and blowhards lowers the stakes a little. While the character of Merida answers Pixar's cultural critics emphatically — and offers young girls a spirited wild card to add to their gallery of satin-gowned Disney princesses — the studio hasn't imagined a vehicle worthy of her.

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8 more sequels eddie murphy should make after beverly hills cop 4, the adventures of priscilla, queen of the desert 2 gets progress update from guy pearce, even though brave is solid from beginning to end, the experience might be a little underwhelming for older viewers who expect pixar to continue pushing the boundaries of animated film storytelling..

Easily one of the most trusted names in animated filmmaking, Pixar is back with another original story for children and adults, alike. Following behind a pair of franchise sequels ( Toy Story 3 and Cars 2 ), with Brave the studio is set to tackle its very first full-length princess fairy tale story - a staple of Disney's hand-drawn animated classics. This round, Pixar alum and John Carter co-writer Mark Andrews is stepping into the director's chair, after the film's creator, Brenda Chapman ( The Prince of Egypt ), left the project following a series of creative differences.

After the mixed response to Cars 2 , which received Pixar's harshest critical lashing to date, has the film studio managed to produce an animated experience that successfully balances a new story, enjoyable characters and groundbreaking visuals for movie lovers of all ages - not just the juice box crowd? Following in the footsteps of films like Up and Wall-E , not to mention franchise threequel Toy Story 3 , does Brave once again raise the bar for animated films?

Fortunately, Brave is a return to form for the studio and delivers plenty of fun for moviegoers from all walks of life. However, for anyone who was especially moved by the studio's more "mature" films - namely the aforementioned Up and Wall-E - Brave could come across as somewhat less ambitious (and subsequently a little underwhelming) - as the core storyline relies on a lot of familiar fairy tale tropes. This isn't to say that the film fails to deliver a competent narrative or charming characters - but, for some, the studio may not have provided as many memorable or thought-provoking story beats this round. But even though Brave may not soar quite as high as some of Pixar's most celebrated efforts, the movie still offers plenty to enjoy - not to mention, a solid mix of traditional princess power coupled with the studio's trademark charm and humor.

Brave (originally titled The Bear and the Bow ) follows reckless tomboy Princess Merida (Kelly Macdonald) whose mother, Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson), has been diligently preparing her for a life of royal responsibilities. Unlike more traditional Princesses, Merida takes after her warrior father, King Fergus (Billy Connolly), and would much rather be riding through the forest on horseback firing arrows, or climbing mountains, than dressing for a royal function or practicing proper etiquette. Her rebellious attitude comes to a head when the Queen invites three leaders in the kingdom to present their sons as suitors for Merida, and the Princess makes a deal with a local witch who promises to help change the girl's fate. Unfortunately, the witch's spell results in unexpected consequences, forcing Merida to rethink her obligation as Princess - for the sake of her family as well as the betterment of the kingdom.

As mentioned, while the Brave storyline is definitely entertaining, it's not nearly as innovative as some of Pixar's other works - relying heavily on familiar "be yourself" and "put aside selfish behavior" plot threads. Many of the story beats and dramatic setups will be familiar to most adult moviegoers - making it easy to predict events before they are revealed. Much like its Pixar predecessors, fans will no doubt defend the movie by reminding naysayers that, above all else, Brave is a kids movie - and without question, as a kids movie, the film succeeds. However, adults looking for a contemplative and "mature" animated offering may find Brave to be a bit on-the-nose and too predictable to provide anything more than moment to moment entertainment. As a result, there are plenty of enjoyable comedy and action beats that will appeal to viewers of all ages - there just isn't a lot to unpack after the lights go up.

Those who can relate to Mother/daughter relationships will be able to draw a bit more value out of the onscreen character drama - since the conflict between Merida and Queen Elinor is the central motor of the story. This isn't to say that Brave will only appeal to women, but it doesn't take too long to see that nearly all of the male characters are designed to provide little more than comedy relief. Hollywood is overstuffed with male heroes, so it's refreshing to see Merida (and Queen Elinor) take center stage in the film; although, with so many rash and downright knuckleheaded men running around in the kingdom, some male audience members might have a hard time connecting to the film's emotional touchstones (even though King Fergus and the royal triplets are among the most entertaining players in the film).

Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, and Emma Thompson in 'Brave'

That said, even with a number of predictable story beats and a lot of one-note male characters, Brave provides plenty of eye candy for animated film fans. The hair effects alone are incredible - not to mention the gorgeous rolling hills of the Scottish countryside. Additionally, the movie offers a solid story that, in spite of a heavy reliance on familiar archetypes, manages to put a unique stamp on the fairytale genre. Merida isn't exceptionally different from prior Disney Princesses (who yearn to be free of their responsibilities and live a "normal" life) but the similarities won't prevent audiences from identifying with the character or her personal journey.

Like most animated films, Brave is screening in 3D and, like most animated films, the movie looks sharp in the premium format - rarely relying on "jump out of the screen" gags. Consequently, either version of the film is recommendable - since the 3D effect is neither distracting nor essential to enjoying the onscreen action.

While it doesn't break a lot of new ground, Brave is a beautiful and competent entry in Disney's robust fairytale film pedigree - one that is sure to dazzle younger viewers. Princess Merida will, without question, have no trouble competing alongside iconic Mouse House heroines like Sleeping Beauty, Jasmine, and Ariel, as one of Disney's best animated leading ladies. Nonetheless, even though Brave is solid from beginning to end, the experience might be a little underwhelming for older viewers who expect Pixar to continue pushing the boundaries of animated film storytelling with another "mature" offering. Ultimately, it's an easy film to recommend, but some ardent cinephiles might want to temper their lofty expectations.

If you’re still on the fence about Brave , check out the trailer below:

[poll id="337"]

Let us know what you thought of the film in the comment section below.

Follow me on Twitter @ benkendrick for future reviews, as well as movie, TV, and gaming news.

Brave is Rated PG for some scary action and rude humor. Now playing in theaters.

Pixar's Brave follows Princess Merida of DunBroch (Kelly MacDonald), the daughter of a clan chief in medieval Scotland. When Meridia is told she must marry the suitor of her parents' choosing, she refuses, defying an age-old tradition and causing chaos in the kingdom. This starts a chain of events that causes Merida's mother, Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson), to fall victim to a magical curse, the princess sets off into the wild to rescue her.

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‘brave’: what the critics are saying.

THR gathers reviews from the nation's top critics for Pixar's latest film, directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman.

By THR Staff

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Brave Merida with Arrow - H 2012

Pixar ‘s 13th film, directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman , follows an adventurous Scottish princess (voiced by Kelly Macdonald ). Chapman is the first woman hired to direct a Pixar feature, and this is also the first time that Pixar Studios have featured a female main character.

PHOTOS: From ‘Toy Story’ to ‘ Brave ‘: Your Essential Guide to Pixar’s Movies

The movie has divided critics, who seem to have expected a transcendent production more along the lines of Pixar’s previous work, which includes Toy Story and The Incredibles. The movie currently maintains a 73 percent rating on RottenTomatoes.

Read below for some of the reviews from the top critics:

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 [Pixar]. 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.”

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.”

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. 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.”

Drew 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. It was, at one point, also the studio’s first movie directed by a woman. 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. 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. Brave it is not.”

VIDEO: Brave’s’ Kelly Macdonald on Her Character Merida: ‘She Makes Her Own Trouble’

Claudia Puig from USA Today praises Pixar’s protagonist saying “Princess Merida is endearing, but she’s no simpering Sleeping Beauty. Indefatigable and fierce, she’s a role model for girls in the 21st century.”

Entertainment Weekly ‘s Lisa Schwarzbaum says : “In the wee lass’ struggle to break that haywire curse, with all the detours, obstacles, funny coincidences, and aw, gee moments typical of such a storytelling path, Brave ‘s modern structure is stalled by Disney-style conventions and values.” She continues, “And therein lies the movie’s distracting fault line. Merida may be a headstrong heroine, a feisty animated hybrid who calls to mind Katniss Everdeen, Bella Swan, and the neo-fairy-tale protagonist who faces off against her evil stepmother in Snow White and the Huntsman . But she is also, for safety’s sake, a nice girl in a pretty green dress who loves her family and believes in dynasty.”

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Summary Brave follows the heroic journey of Merida, a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of King Fergus and Queen Elinor. Determined to change her fate, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the unruly and uproarious lords of the land: massive, surly Lord Macintosh and cantankerous Lord Dingwall, unleashing chaos in the kingdom. When she ... Read More

Directed By : Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman, Steve Purcell

Written By : Brenda Chapman, Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Irene Mecchi

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Billy connolly, emma thompson, julie walters, robbie coltrane, lord dingwall, kevin mckidd, lord macguffin, young macguffin, craig ferguson, lord macintosh, sally kinghorn, eilidh fraser, peigi barker, young merida, steven cree, young macintosh, steve purcell, callum o'neill, wee dingwall, patrick doyle, john ratzenberger, critic reviews.

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DVD & Streaming
Action/Adventure , Animation , Comedy , Drama , Kids , Sci-Fi/Fantasy

Content Caution

In Theaters

June 22, 2012
Voices of Kelly Macdonald as Princess Merida; Emma Thompson as Queen Elinor; Billy Connolly as King Fergus; Kevin McKidd as Lord MacGuffin/Young MacGuffin; Robbie Coltrane as Lord Dingwall; Craig Ferguson as Lord Macintosh

Home Release Date

November 13, 2012
Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Brenda Chapman

Distributor

Walt Disney

Movie Review

To be a Disney princess is to have mommy issues.

Snow White’s stepmother wanted to kill her. Cinderella’s wanted to lock her up. In Tangled , Rapunzel’s wanted to comb the ever-loving life out of her hair. And Princess Merida—a headstrong young lass with a spirit as fiery as her own unruly hair? Her mother wants her to grow up to be … a bride.

Practically every day, Elinor trains Merida in the finer points of ladyship: how to stand, how to eat, how to talk, how to walk. She teaches her lute-playing and schools her in the kingdom’s history and geography. “A princess strives for, well, perfection,” Elinor tells her. And only perfection is good enough. The lessons are relentless, and with each new rule, familiar scold and look of disappointment Elinor piles on, Merida feels as if her life’s not her own. That she’s imprisoned in a world of her mom’s making.

And now the final lock is in place: Elinor’s marrying Merida off. And not to the kilted boy next door, either, but to the son of one of the kingdom’s three fractious lords. She’s to be the grand prize in an archery contest, and whatever union results won’t be of love, but of duty—duty to the clans and the kingdom.

Merida’s having none of it.

In a breathtaking moment of rebellion, she competes for her own hand and wins it, enraging the lords and infuriating the queen. But Merida’s not done. Back in the castle, she slices through a tapestry depicting her family—severing Elinor from Merida’s side.

“You’re a beast!” Merida shouts at her. “I’d rather die than be like you!”

The argument grows uglier, and Merida flees from the castle with her face as red as her lashes, tears streaming down her cheeks … as she finds herself in the cottage of an old, mysterious witch with a passion for woodcarving. When the witch tries to sell Merida a bit of her handiwork, the princess suggests a different deal: I’ll buy all your woodstuffs if you sell me a spell.

“Change my mom,” Merida says. “That will change my fate.”

Positive Elements

We’ve come to expect a lot from Disney’s brilliant animated adjunct, Pixar—beautiful art, great comedy and, most of all, fantastic storytelling. Pixar’s stories are rooted in relationships, and the studio manages to examine even the most fractious with honesty, sensitivity and grace.

Merida and Elinor’s difficult, complex relationship lies at the very soul of Brave . But while Merida may think her mother’s a beast, and Elinor might consider Merida a brat, there are no villains here: only two strong, caring and (might as well say it) brave women who, in spite of their differences, love each other very much.

Throughout the course of the movie, Elinor does change: Given a new perspective, she’s able to see Merida not as merely a flawed project but as a growing, confident young woman—more capable and mature than she had imagined. Moreover, she moves the kingdom away from the formulaic betrothal process it’s historically embraced. Instead of claiming the princess like a blue ribbon at a fair, a potential suitor must now (as a lord tells us) win her heart before he wins her hand.

But it’s Merida who changes more here. She discovers that her mother, far from being a beast, has loved and cared for her as much as anyone. She realizes that all those lessons were important—that she has responsibilities and duties that she can’t shirk or run away from. In Brave , Merida grows up before our eyes—not physically, but emotionally.

Elinor and Merida wind up risking their lives for each other, and their contentious-but-beautiful bond mimics, in its own surreal way, many a mother-daughter relationship. We see here a mom’s need to prepare her kids for the real world, a daughter’s desire for freedom and the ability to make her own decisions. Those teen years can be difficult in many households. Brave doesn’t tell us otherwise. But it asks us to remember that when you strip away all the differences and all the hurt, the bond between mother and daughter is a thing of transcendent beauty.

Spiritual Elements

As mentioned, Brave is inflected with magic. It’s not the flyweight wand-waving of Cinderella or the more naturalistic conjurations of Harry Potter . Rather, it’s something more in step with the story’s ancient Scottish setting: Here, magic is mysterious. Enigmatic. Dark.

The witch works her magic through a giant cauldron and is assisted by a not-so-cute crow. Several times, Merida follows a trail of will-o’-the-wisps—strange, floating lights that her mother tells her will “lead you to your fate.” The first time she follows them, they lead to Mordu, a huge “demon bear” that bites off her father’s leg. The next time she sees them, she’s lying in a Stonehenge-like circle—a magic ring her horse refuses to enter—and the wisps’ trail leads to the witch’s door. A third time they take her to Mordu’s lair, where she discovers the bear’s dark, magical past and nearly gets herself killed.

The film seems to reflect, perhaps, a pre-Christian Scotland, when druidic influence was still strong. And while the movie’s narrative makes it clear that Merida’s dealings with the witch are ill-advised, they also help, indirectly, get her out of her betrothal.

We also hear a great deal of talk about “fate” and “destiny,” usually pushed into the realm of social expectations more than anything spiritual. A woodcarving mimics Michelangelo’s painting of God and Adam from the Sistine Chapel, only the figures are bears.

Sexual Content

Suddenly finding herself naked in a field—under a tapestry—Elinor causes a bit of a stir among the nobles. She and her husband, King Fergus, smooch, which makes Merida pretty uncomfortable.

Though dead-set against being betrothed, Merida does seem to perk up when she thinks a massive, muscled Scotsman might be one of her suitors. He’s not. Later we see him wooing one of the castle’s servants.

A servant woman sports a robust amount of cleavage. And one of Merida’s precocious brothers dives his hand into said cleavage to retrieve a key. It’s suggested that Fergus pinches Elinor’s rear. A suitor flexes his pecs; a handful of maidens swoon at his exploits.

Violent Content

There’s a reason why Romans built a wall between England and Scotland. We see the king, his lords and their contingencies squabble over pride and other minor matters—hitting, kicking, biting, nipple-pinching and eye-gouging in a raucous slapstick scene. Elinor eventually grabs Fergus and the lords by their ears and drags them out of the melee to make the fighting stop.

We don’t see Fergus lose his leg, but we do see some of the confrontations with bears—battles that involve swords and arrows and claws and teeth. Two bears get into a fight in which one is killed (crushed by a rock). Merida’s injured by the swipe of a bear claw.

A servant runs into a pole. Merida falls from her horse.

Crude or Profane Language

Namecalling includes “hag” and “troll.”

Drug and Alcohol Content

Fergus drinks from a flagon. Merida suggests that her dad and the lords celebrate something by going down to the cellar and cracking open Fergus’ private stores.

Other Negative Elements

The triplets engage in a number of stunts and pranks, exasperating the adults but rarely earning an admonishment. They also run around naked. (They’re shown from behind.) Fergus, along with several lords and soldiers, are seen (also from behind) without pants. A lord moons his compatriots.

Elinor gets queasy after eating a tart-like confection, burping and gagging. A stock Disney “follow your heart” refrain gives a touch of heartburn. And a dish of haggis induces gags.

Brave is a quite good tale deftly told, filled with moments of insight, beauty and humor. And of course the animation is amazing. But in terms of content, it cowers ever so slightly. Bear rears and bare rears wriggle across the screen. Lords moon one another. Magic coats the Scottish highlands like so much dark frosting.

Brave also can be scary. This place is populated by fearsome beasts, hidden dangers and unexpected threats. And the subject matter can play on a child’s deepest fears. For sensitive, younger kids, Brave may well spark a nightmare or two.

Which brings me back to something I wrote earlier: We’ve come to expect a lot from Pixar. Ever since the release of Toy Story in 1995, the studio has dazzled us with some of the finest, most family-friendly movies ever. In this humble reviewer’s opinion, not even Disney in its golden age (1939-47) or renaissance (1989-2000) can match Pixar’s present run.

All of which sets up Brave as a bit of a disappointment … except in the area of its familial lessons learned by both mother and daughter. They’re not just magical: They’re practical. They’re discerning. And they’re inspiring.

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

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Brave : The Princess and Her Unbearable Mom

It takes a while, but the new Pixar movie about a Scottish princess reveals its grand artistry and a Brave heart

Disney princesses have a rough time with the women who run their lives. The female authority figure is usually a stepmother — in Disney animated features, the inevitable phrase would be “wicked stepmother” — who offers Snow White a poisoned apple, forces scullery work on Cinderella and, in Tangled , locks Rapunzel in a high tower for her entire childhood and most of her adolescence. The millions of actual stepmoms, among all the postnuclear families in the world, must think of these portrayals as libel. They should bring a class-action suit against the Walt Disney Company and picket its Burbank headquarters.

Up in the San Francisco suburb of Emeryville, where the Pixar kids play, movie mothers are nearly invisible. Virtually every one of Pixar’s CGI masterpieces (or, in the case of Cars and its sequel, Mater-pieces) is a buddy film limning the virtues of camaraderie. The studio might be a boys’ treehouse with a warning sign nailed to the front: NO MOMS ALLOWED.

(LIST: Corliss’s all-TIME Top 25 Animated Features )

And, until now, no women directors. Before Brave , Pixar’s old-boy network had never designed a feature film around a female character, never put a woman in charge of it. As director, Pixar boss John Lasseter brought in Brenda Chapman, who had co-directed DreamWorks’ The Prince of Egypt in 1998 and who had a scenario based on her complex relationship with her own young daughter. Presto: Gender equality in the world’s premier animation house!

Except that Chapman was removed halfway through in favor of Mark Andrews, a Pixar veteran who served as co-writer and second unit director of John Carter . There were whispers that Chapman had got lost in the thickets of story, that the movie needed a hand — a man’s hand — to make it more of an action film, less a Mother’s Day card.

(READ: Joel Stein on Pixar and Brave )

The story — of a rebellious princess who battles an imperious queen and is beset by magic spells — is a twist for Pixar but as familiar to its parent company Disney as Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs , Beauty and the Beast and The Princess and the Frog . One big difference: the woman who makes the heroine’s life miserable is not her stepmother but her own mom.

In ancient Scotland, Merida (voiced by Kelly Macdonald) is a lass as wild as her curly red mane. An expert in archery, like The Hunger Games ’ Katniss, Merida feels closer to the bear-hunting machismo of her father, King Fergus (Billy Connolly), than to the civilizing demands of her mother Elinor (Emma Thompson). She snorts when she laughs, filches food from the pantry, just because she can, and runs free through the bear-infested woods. She’s both a tomboy and a sullen teen who responds to her mother’s every request by flopping on the nearest piece of furniture and whining, in two harsh syllables, “Mah-ahm!”

When the Queen imports three unsuitable suitors as prospective husbands, Merida causes havoc in the realm by declaring she’ll marry no one but herself. “I hope you die!” she screams at the woman who gave her life. In a rage, Merida visits a witch (Julie Walters), hoping for a magic spell that will change her mother. It does. Reviewers’ etiquette requires that we speak no more of it. If you want to know what happens in the movie’s Act Two, buy a subscription to TIME and read the review in last week’s issue.

(READ: Corliss’ full review of Brave by subscribing to TIME)

Replacing the person in charge is a Pixar tradition (it happened on Toy Story 2 , Ratatouille , WALL•E and Cars 2 ), but the creative tension between two directors, a man and a woman, is evident from the tug of tones in Brave ’s telling: part hearty, part heartfelt. The movie spends its first half in brawny highlands humor — fighting, carousing, spit takes, guy stuff — and a lot of Scots stereotyping, as if they were Australians or something. Then it abruptly left-turns into the primal bonding of mother and daughter.

(READ: Graeme McMillan on Pixar’s problems with stereotypes )

However Manichaean the process of creating the movie, Brave is visually organic. It jettisons the sleek old Pixar shapes of toys, cars and robots — all relatively easy to animate — for images of untamed nature, from Merida’s hair to the copses and crags of imaginary Scotland. Visually the most ravishing and complex Pixar movie, Brave evokes memories of Walt Disney’s early experiments with the multiplane camera, but with the more persuasive intricacies available to CGI artists.

The movie takes nearly an hour to reach its central themes: that someone we think is a beast may love us to pieces, that teen rebellion can have dreadful consequences and that, sometimes, even a Scots mother can have a Brave heart. By the climax, at which all right-thinking viewers will have dissolved in a puddle of warm appreciation, the new Pixar film has earned two cheers and a big bear hug. Now maybe some animation studio will make a really radical movie: one with a nice, caring stepmother.

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Review: Pixar’s ‘Brave’ Is A Powerful But Wobbly Feminist Fairy Tale

Drew taylor.

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For those wanting to go in cold, there are some spoilers ahead.

There are a lot of firsts associated with “ Brave ,” Disney / Pixar ‘s new feature, set in the misty Scottish highlands. It’s the studio’s first period piece (“ The Incredibles ‘” captivating retro-futurism doesn’t count, it seems), their first fairy tale, and their first film led by a female character (in this case Princess Merida, voiced with strength and conviction by Kelly Macdonald ). It was, at one point, also the studio’s first movie directed by a woman ( Brenda Chapman ). 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. 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. Brave it is not.

Over the years Pixar has gotten a lot of flak over its lack of female characters. While this isn’t completely fair (the speech Elastigirl gives Violet in “The Incredibles” is Feminism 101, and the gender-bending, rainbow-colored female bird Kevin in “ Up ” was sufficiently progressive) but there is enough of a void to make “Brave” seem really big and important – a feminist fairy tale from Pixar? Fuck yeah!

What’s so interesting about the marketing of “Brave” is that all the footage and artwork thus far released has been culled from the first twenty minutes or so of the movie. It’s in this stretch that we meet fair Merida (Macdonald), her bright red hair an unwieldy tangle, who lives in a kingdom with her mother Queen Elinor ( Emma Thompson ) and father King Fergus ( Billy Connolly ) as well as three annoying, rambunctious brothers (the triplets Harris, Hubert and Hamish). Merida is less interested in the finery of being a princess (the tenets taught, stringently, by the queen), and more interested in shooting her bow (she’s an ace archer) and riding through the highlands with her trusty steed Angus. All of this stuff is beautiful and captivating, the camera gliding over trees and hilltops, everything rendered in a kind of vibrant, slightly heightened realism. And when what appears to be the main thrust of the story kicks in – Merida’s family wanting her to engage in the selection of a suitor – it’s so good you start to vibrate.

The lord of three kingdoms show up to woo her (led by Craig Ferguson , Robbie Coltrane and Kevin McKidd , of course), each more pathetic than the last. Merida can barely keep from rolling her eyes, and when a physical test is proposed, the winner of which will win her hand, she eagerly suggests archery. During the game she steps up, takes off her royal garb, and says she wants to attempt for her own hand. (Of course, she totally owns the archery.) It’s a powerful sentiment, the most unabashedly feminist moment in recent fairy tale memory (dating back to at least 1998’s “ Mulan ,” which featured a princess who, before that, was an androgynous, cross-dressing warrior) and it makes you want to stand up and pump your fist with pride (if you’re more out of touch you might scream out something like “You go girl!” but we wouldn’t suggest it).

It’s just that, *spoilers* after this sequence, the most memorable and moving of the film, it totally switches gears. The queen is furious at Merida, and can’t understand why she would do something that she feels is totally selfish (if Merida doesn’t take the hand of one of the suitors, it could lead to kingdom-wide war like something out of “ Game of Thrones ” except with less boobs and beheadings). Merida, outraged, grabs Angus and heads for the hills (quite literally). In a brief prologue it was established that Merida can see into the magical realm, drawn there by small spirits called “wisps” (their design and function owes a debt to Hayao Miyazaki ’s bobby-headed spirits in “ Princess Mononoke ”) which are supposed to point you in the direction of your fate. On this day, they lead Merida to a ramshackle house anyone who’s read a storybook would know to avoid.

In the house is where the movie really begins – it’s where Merida meets a mysterious Wise Woman ( Julie Walters ), a witch who is obsessed with wood-carvings of bears, and who offers Merida the chance to change her mother (with the help of a little dark magic cake). Returning to the castle, Merida gives her mother the magic cake, thinking that it will change her mind. Instead, it literally transforms the queen – into a huge, hulking bear. That’s right – “Brave” is really about a princess who accidentally transforms her mother into a bear . The movie changes, too, going from the tale of a plucky young girl who discovers herself and her power (and causes everyone else to acknowledge the same) to being both broader and more simplistic. It’s now about the relationship between her and her mother (Pixar can never walk away from a good buddy movie set-up), and instead of a young girl’s empowerment it’s about things like responsibility, entitlement, selfishness and communication. Things get much, much less interesting.

And it’s a huge shame, too. The bear transformation takes the wind out of the movie. What would have been amazing would have been if her self-empowerment somehow melded with her relationship with the magical world and she could have brought magic back to a land that had stopped believing in it, just as she starts to really believe in herself. But instead it’s an awkward buddy movie, made all the more awkward by the fact that the bear doesn’t talk, it just kind of growls around. The design of the movie remains unflaggingly brilliant — in particular the design of the queen bear seems at once familiar and altogether new (a rare feat considering how many animated bears, from Baloo to “Brother Bear,” we’ve seen throughout the years), and while the stakes don’t seem particularly high, especially since the queen was kind of a bitch to our more innately lovable princess, but the idea that, if the spell holds, the soul of the queen will evaporate from the bear’s body is pretty nifty.

Unfortunately, the script for “Brave,” worked on by Chapman, Steve Purcell , Irene Mecchi , and Chapman’s directorial successor, Mark Andrews , is wobbly and overtly segmented, with each section of the movie never having enough time to fully breathe or gain any traction. Some sections of the movie are just tonally amiss – there’s some truly clumsy narration that bookends the film and a moment when Merida returns to the witch’s hut and is greeted with a magical “answering machine” that feels like it was cut-and-pasted from an entirely different movie altogether. The last act, in particular, is a mess, with complicated relationships having to get tidily wrapped up, a whole lot of magical mumbo jumbo being unleashed on the kingdom (amusingly, the triplets take a bite of the same magic cake and turn into adorable cubs), various clans on the brink of PG-rated skirmishes, and, hilariously, a moment towards the end where Merida goes out of her way to assure middle-American audiences that she is not a lesbian (even though she totally is and the movie would have been much stronger if it had actually admitted it). *end spoilers*

While “Brave” would have just been a cute, visually dazzling but ultimately disappointing Pixar movie, it feels graver and more serious because it’s been this long since they’ve taken on a female protagonist and this really should have been a bolder, more experimental exercise. In the last few years, like clans of Scottish tribesman, the houses of Disney and Pixar have begun to merge (for evidence look no further than the Randy Newman songs in “ The Princess and the Frog ” or the newly opened Carsland expansion in Disney California Adventure ), and “Brave” seems like a natural progression of that melding. This doesn’t feel like “ WALL-E ,” it feels like “ Tangled .” And “Tangled” (and “Brave”) are perfectly fine animated movies, with “Brave” at times reaching staggering emotional depths in the mother/daughter relationship, but it’s not enough. It’s too unfocused and cute and lacking in memorable set pieces (an enraged, enchanted bear named Mordu can’t even scare up any excitement). In the end, “Brave” stops just short of being truly magical. [B]

Movie Review: Brave (2012)

Greg Eichelberger
Movie Reviews
21 responses
--> June 20, 2012

Back-to-back duds from Pixar? What’s next — the Apocalypse?

The writing was on the wall, however, when the opening short, “ La Luna ,” (about two men and a little boy shoveling little stars on the moon) — so long one of my favorite ingredients of this studio — comes across as overly artsy and not at all entertaining. That is nothing compared to their latest feature, Brave , though. It’s “Braveheart” meets “Jack Frost” (not the Michael Keaton movie, but the 1965 Finno-Soviet production about witches, bears and magic spells) and it is neither artsy nor particularly entertaining but instead clunky and confusing (and boasts one of the more ridiculous conclusions in recent memory).

But, this tale of dark forests, foreboding lochs and mystical pagan symbols weaved around the tale of a teenage princess coming of age in a man’s world is certainly nowhere near as dismal as “ Cars 2 .”

It’s medieval Scotland and the land is ruled by King Fergus (voice of Billy Connolly, “ Fido “) and Queen Elinor (voice of Emma Thompson, “ Men in Black 3 “). They have three precocious red-haired triplet boys and a rebellious teenage daughter, Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald, “ Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 “).

Movie review of Brave (2012) by The Critical Movie Critics

Redheads are always trouble.

Merida, having reached the age of marriage (whatever THAT was in medieval Scotland), is forced to watch as a series of goof-balls vie for her hand. She objects to this ritual, but her mother the Queen insists on what amounts to a public humiliation of her daughter. This, predictably, creates a rift between mother and daughter, and Merida is soon running off, following a line of will-o-the-wisps straight to an evil, woodcarving witch.

Up until this point, Brave is beautiful. The lush colors of the Scottish landscape is captivating, the ethereal and beguiling blue-lit will-o-the-wisps are entrancing, the tale of the girl’s dilemma is intriguing and the cute hi-jinx of the three little boys is delightful. But once Merida, still angry over her perceived mistreatment, has a spell cast transforming her mother into a bruin, the film slows to an uncomfortable crawl (until the final showdown) and gets much too dark — especially for children expecting something entirely different.

Learning the true impact of the curse, Merida works feverishly to undo what she’s done. This leads to several pursuits including one that has her making a rousing speech to stop a war between kingdoms. The final battle, however, is quite the spectacle. Not necessarily in a good way though, as it takes place mostly in the black of night with frightening cruelty. The action is also further muddled with the unnecessary use of 3D technology. (Come to think of it, the 3D effects are more of a bane than a boost to the entire movie).

At least the voice talents of Connolly, Macdonald and others are authentic to the region and fit nicely with their respective characters.

So, sprouting from a long line of classic animated films such as “Finding Nemo,” “ Wall-E ,” and “ Up ,” among others, Brave proves once again the creators of these former masterpieces are indeed fallible and vincible.

And that is a very sad reality indeed.

Tagged: archery , bear , curse , princess

I have been a movie fan for most of my life and a film critic since 1986 (my first published review was for "Platoon"). Since that time I have written for several news and entertainment publications in California, Utah and Idaho. Big fan of the Academy Awards - but wish it would go back to the five-minute dinner it was in May, 1929. A former member of the San Diego Film Critics Society and current co-host of "The Movie Guys," each Sunday afternoon on KOGO AM 600 in San Diego with Kevin Finnerty.

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'Movie Review: Brave (2012)' have 21 comments

June 20, 2012 @ 6:42 pm Maria

Your review withstanding, I cannot wait to see this. It looks wonderful.

June 20, 2012 @ 7:25 pm Gary

Agree with much of what you say Greg. The movie was good just not great. It falls short of Pixar brilliance.

June 22, 2012 @ 5:12 pm BigBob

Took the kids to see it earlier in the afternoon and loved it. It probably could have done without the bumbling bear stuff but it was good nonetheless.

June 22, 2012 @ 5:32 pm Go Gabba

They did a good job fleshing out Merida and making her an accessible character. I can’t say the same for the rest (although the triplets were a lot of fun). The mother-daughter relationship was good early on and that story arc shouldn’t have been abandoned. Visuals were great.

I’d give it a B-

June 22, 2012 @ 5:43 pm Renee

I just left this movie, My son and I LOVED it! Just one problem with your take on it. What about the Witch tells you she is EVIL? I felt just the opposite. Merida got EXACTLY what she asked for .. not exactly the way she expected but she got what she wanted. The character of the witch did not seem Evil in the slightest bit, and I was REFRESHED that for once a Disney movie did NOT portray a witch as evil. How you got that idea is beyond me!

June 22, 2012 @ 6:13 pm Heather C

Maybe its time Pixar isn’t held to some ridiculously high standard. Brave is a good movie all around — the animation is stunning, the story has emotion and the characters are well thought out. What more is expected?

June 22, 2012 @ 6:54 pm ian michie

You’re an idiot.

June 22, 2012 @ 7:50 pm Tyler

I’ll bet that had Dreamworks released this, you’d have reviewed it differently.

June 22, 2012 @ 8:49 pm MathBling

Not the finest Pixar flick I’ve seen, not the worst either.

June 22, 2012 @ 9:39 pm Darren

The battle scenes are more violent than anything Pixar has done in the past, but it wasn’t so graphic that children can’t see it. My seven and nine year old went with me and weren’t fazed by anything they saw. Actually, they wanted to see it again….

June 23, 2012 @ 1:13 am Eliza

The family loved it.

June 23, 2012 @ 11:03 am Jared

They should have left the title “The Bear and the Bow” – it describes the movie so much better than “Brave” does.

June 23, 2012 @ 1:49 pm Karen Finnely

I really enjoyed the movie. Even though I thought the pacing was off, the heavy focus on the characters and their relationships won me over.

June 23, 2012 @ 10:22 pm Mikeel

I was a bit pissed off with how extreme the bear fight was. It scared the shit out of my 4 year old daughter.

June 24, 2012 @ 4:48 pm Nancy

I don’t know if we saw the same movie. The mother/daughter conflict was very touching – maybe you didn’t get it because you’re not a woman. Or maybe you just don’t get it..

June 25, 2012 @ 9:48 am LeftBrained

Felt a little clunky; not the best from Pixar. Two in a row – maybe the Disney influence is starting to cause more harm than good …?

June 28, 2012 @ 4:04 pm Pete

It’ll give company to A Bug’s Life and Cars 2 in the crappy portion of the Pixar DVD collection.

July 4, 2012 @ 7:00 pm Sara

Only Pixar can make me cry at an animated movie. Damn them.

September 6, 2012 @ 2:15 pm Frankie

The ending was so heartfelt.

July 6, 2012 @ 1:04 am Beemo

Only dud Greg is your review.

August 9, 2012 @ 2:44 pm amanda kellic

loved it. not sure what you saw but this was no mistep by Pixar.

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Brave review

Pixar ploughs into new territory with Brave. So how does it compare to the studio’s previous films? Mark finds out…

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It seems that ever since Pixar’s latest production was announced, Brave has been the subject of a number of labels. It’s the studio’s first period piece, their first fairytale movie, and their first film with a female protagonist.

However, like the best of Pixar’s work, the film itself transcends such labels and recaptures the magic that many fans felt was missing in Cars 2. On the other hand, from a studio that has brought toys to life and depicted love between robots without necessarily having to give an explanation, this is actually its first feature that deals in actual magic, taking place once upon a time in tenth century Scotland.

Our heroine is Princess Merida, a hot-tempered teenager who loves archery, and frequently rides out to have adventures in the Highlands, much to the dismay of her regal and elegant mother, Queen Elinor. The Queen wishes her daughter would be more ladylike, and hopes to tame her by marrying her off to one of the less-than-eligible first-born sons of neighbouring lairds, Dingwall, Macintosh and Macguffin.

Unimpressed by her choice of husbands, and by the fact that she’s being rushed into marriage, Merida and her mother fall out in a big way. The film is very much about the occasional disparities between a parent and a child, and Merida discovers what bravery really means when magic intercedes in their already troubled relationship.

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For those with certain expectations from the studio, I should say that there isn’t a moment to match tear-jerking scenes from WALL-E, Up or Toy Story 3 , and nor do I think this one will breach many fans’ top five favourite Pixar movies. Given the quality of most of its films up to this point, however, that’s hardly a negative. Pixar seems to be at its best when touching upon themes of family, particularly with regard to parenthood, and it’s absolutely back on form here.

It’s almost a tradition that Pixar trailers tend to give away very little about their corresponding movies. In this case, the trailers and marketing have largely gone no further than half an hour into Brave , and you’ll understand why when you see the film. For me, the trailers did just enough to make me want to see the film, and so the twist in the tale came as quite a surprise, after what some might view as a slowly-paced opening act.

Even more surprising, despite the very handsome trailers, is just how gorgeous this film truly is. It’s traditional that big movies with lots of spectacle tend to have accompanying reference books about their artwork, and this is the first movie I can remember seeing that made me want to go out and buy The Art Of.. tomeimmediately, just to look at the development of the visuals.

The Scottish Highlands are so lovingly rendered and marvellously recreated that it’s impossible to imagine that they were going to be almost completely covered in snow until a certain point in the production process. Pixar showcases the details magnificently, with shots that are reminiscent of the swooping helicopter sequences in live-action epics like The Lord Of The Rings. This is, by far, the best-looking film it’s ever made.

Against this backdrop stands Merida, whose distinctive ginger hair was designed specifically to be seen apart from the gloriously meticulous detail of the Highlands, no matter where she was placed in any given frame. It’s not a Scottish stereotype, but a nice bit of visual storytelling that her fiery mane is so uncontrollable, despite Elinor’s best efforts to groom it into submission.

The mother-daughter relationship is really the heart of the movie, and the voices of Kelly McDonald and Emma Thompson bring this to life wonderfully. One of my favourite scenes happens early on, when Merida and Elinor are simultaneously pretending to talk to one another, in different rooms, about what they want and not quite seeing the other’s own point of view. It very literally reminded me of the voice acting process, of actors standing in different rooms and recording dialogue, and the scene highlights the quality of the vocal performances.

Alongside the emotional core of the film, there are comedic family dynamics at work elsewhere. Merida’s dad, King Fergus (Billy Connolly), has some nice interplay with Lords Dingwall (Robbie Coltrane) Macintosh (Craig Ferguson), and MacGuffin (Kevin McKidd), but each has a funny and distinctive dynamic with their own children. Most enjoyable is the way McKidd also voices his character’s son, Young MacGuffin, with an incomprehensible Doric dialect that is consistently funny without being over-egged or mean-spirited.

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The thing that really stands out is that it’s not a carnivalesque depiction of Scotland, but an authentic love letter to its national personality. The obvious attraction is its wealth of storytelling, as Pixar has always placed story first and foremost. You see that in King Fergus, who lost his leg in a battle with a legendary bear known as Mor’du, and tells the story to absolutely anyone who will listen, even though they all know it by heart.

There’s no such repetition in Brave , a Pixar fairytale which manages to emulate that familiar sense of Disney-ness from classic animation, while also blazing a trail in animated landscapes and consistently feeling very original. In Merida, it’s created an all-new Disney princess, bucking trends and subverting expectations in the more modern tradition, while her creators focus on rediscovering the magic that made us fall in love with their work in the first place.

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Mark Harrison | @MHarrison90

Mark is a writer from Middlesbrough, who once drunkenly tried (and failed) to pitch a film about his hometown to a director from Pixar. Fortunately, he…

Brave Review

13 Aug 2012

100 minutes

Once upon a time, there was an animation studio that could do no wrong. Well, that’s not entirely true. A Bug’s Life is only pretty good, Monsters, Inc. not half as funny as it thinks it is, and we’ll come to Cars in a moment. Anyway, this animation studio was rightly held in high esteem not just for the exquisite look of its films, but for the wit, wisdom and emotional colour with which it invested its varied fables. But of late, a shadow has fallen across its pineapple-yellow happy rooms, their communal breakfast carts and bottle-green think tanks. Care of the empty dazzle of Cars 2, sequel to the empty dazzle of Cars; the opening, indeed, of Cars Land in Disneyland (weren’t such tawdry brand extensions beneath their lofty ideals?); and the flop-by-association of John Carter, which their famed Brain Trust could do little to salvage, they appear short on inspiration. For the first time in its rich tapestry, the latest Pixar film is approached with something like trepidation — there have even been rumours of behind-the-scenes conflict, key creatives handing in their Hawaiian shirts. And its first original story since Up appears to be set in the corny realms of fairy tale usually dished up by Mother Disney.

And yet, at the end of the astonishingly good first act of Brave, you want to cheer. Feisty heroine Merida (voiced with thistle-prickled sass by Kelly Macdonald) has won her own hand in marriage by beating a trio of unappealing local suitors in an archery competition, splitting an arrow in a shiver of tensile slow motion. Ready proof of Pixar’s still inexhaustible visual brio, marrying a virtuoso play on movie dynamics with emotional illustration. Merida is a girl on a mission, like Gregory’s Girl retrofitted to Skyrim. It’s the launch pad for a great film, but we get only a very good one.

By the way, gratifyingly we are leagues from singing mice and wedding-cake castles. Drawn from a swatch of ursine-scented Highland folklore, the tale unfolds in a soothingly majestic Celtic Scotland, sprawling into the hazy distance in 3D (to this jaded reviewer’s eyes, one of the best examples of the format thus far). Check out the way things aren’t in focus.

What is sharp as day is the canniness of the lead characters. Crowned with a waterfall of magnificent coppery curls glinting like Irn-Bru, plucky, exasperated Merida is a modern girl in an ancient world (i. e. she won’t marry some local snotling). This is not to her mother’s liking. Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson) is the brains of the kingdom with iron-black locks — save for a streak of Sontag-silver — and one eye on the fragile alliance of local clans: the Dingwalls, the Macintoshes and (wonderfully) the MacGuffins. Vetoing both the romantic carry-on of dreamy Prince Charmings and the current vogue for gender-reversed girl-warriors (although Merida’s archery-tekkers would send Katniss for an early bath), the story is tightly and movingly focussed on this tangle of mother-daughter relations. More like Miyazaki, in fact. Cue: a convenient Macbeth-sprung witch offering a risky spell. Cue: risky spell (without giving the game away, the mother ends up metaphorically embodying the daughter’s opinion of her). Cue: the rest of the film. You can see where it’s going, and that is exactly where it goes.

By the way, led by Billy Connolly’s one-legged, rabble-rousing King Fergus, the men are uniformly eejits: a hilarious, woad-slapped, kilt-wrapped, punch-drunk tartan army bearing more than a passing resemblance to the tribal nitwits of Astérix books. That is apart from Merida’s pipsqueak brothers: a triplet of curly-haired, scene (and bun)-stealing micro-dervishes sure to be championed by junior viewers.

Amongst the hurly-burly of the second and third acts (the film is distinctly three-tiered) there is some ravishing animation (perfect facsimiles of rolling animal gait, rousing midnight getaways, all those ambient details we shouldn’t take for granted: the rippled surface of a lonely loch, the flicker of torch light, the scrupulous textures of stone, wood and tartan). But the film lacks discovery, the way plot unfurls in unforeseen directions in top-table Pixar. That extra layer of interpretation. How Ratatouille was really about the pursuit of art. How the Toy Storys are really about the vexations of middle management. How The Incredibles is a better version of Watchmen than Watchmen.

Brave is an enthralling entertainment, sure to make you laugh. But it’s also a journey of self-discovery readily apparent to anyone weaned on Disney. Even then, the moral is a bit of a fudge — follow your heart and listen to your parents. Group hug. Happily ever after.

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Based on 156 parent reviews

Scarier Than Usual For An Animated Movie

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Too much violence
Too much swearing

Absurdly violent for a kids movie, with a weak story around it.

Another great pixar film, underrated movie and people need to stop whining over silly things, great adventure, lady in red.

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Positive Tale With Some Scariness

Strong girl power, amazing but a little frightening for little kids.

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Brave Movie Review – Dolby Atmos

Pixar’s Brave was another hit for Pixar (at least in our opinion) and this review is our view of the movie as seen in 2D versus 3D, comparing the sound of Dolby Atmos to the standard surround sound, easter eggs, and more. We have presented this review as an audio review as well as the write-up below so you can choose to listen to or read it.

We’re also looking for your feedback as well – and for helping us out, we’re giving away a copy of The Art of Brave to one lucky reader (or listener) – details on how to enter are at the bottom of the review.

To listen to the audio version of the review, click the play button below.

OVERALL DETAILS

Welcome to our review of Disney-Pixar’s movie, Brave. Throughout the review, we may discuss spoilers, so if you don’t want to hear anything specific about the movie, we’d recommend you stop listening at this point.

2D VERSUS 3D

We really liked the 2D version of the movie, but this may have been the best 3D I’ve seen. The scene that first caught my eye in 3D was the scene when King Fergus is telling the tale of how he lost his leg and the boys are mimicking him by mouthing along as he talks. The depth from the triplet closest to the camera to King Fergus at the head of the table was just amazing. I still have a bit of a problem with motion scenes and the motion jitter of 3D that comes along with it, but overall I liked the 3D version a bit better this time while Julie favored the 2D version still.

The reviews that already exist for the movie are wide-ranging from glowing to not-so-great. One of the more common gripes I’ve heard was that it was yet another Princess movie. I would argue that this isn’t just another Princess movie since Merida carves her own path without worrying about a Prince to save her. This is an original script and if I can get off course for a minute and compare the story to products that we love – many if not all products are improvements of something that’s already been done in the past. That’s how I look at Brave, it’s an improved version of a standard story and that makes it unique in its own regard.

The characters are completely lovable and have been well thought out. King Fergus is a gentle giant that has Merida wrapped around his finger. Queen Elinore is so believable as the perfectionist Mother who always means well with Merida. The Triplets – Harris, Hubert, and Hamish are insanely lovable and you can’t help but be endeared to them immediately through their “look” as well as comedic abilities – Julie absolutely loves the boys.

From the moment you meet Merida, you feel her presence as a character. On the obvious front, there’s her hair which commands your attention – but underneath is a well-developed character that almost anyone can associate with at some level. From our standpoint, we associated with the struggle of being yourself but living within the constraints of others.

The lords have received some mixed reviews as well, but I loved them and their quirky looks and attitudes. Personally, I favored Lord Dingwall because of his quick temper and crazy looks (almost a Donald Duck temper). Julie liked Lord Macintosh the best and his implied homage to Apple computers.

DOLBY ATMOS AUDIO

For review purposes, we wanted to make sure we could see the movie two ways – in standard surround sound as well as the new Dolby Atmos. There’s not too much to say about the standard Dolby surround as we’ve all heard it before – it’s not to say that it’s bad, we’re just already familiar with it. Dolby Atmos, on the other hand, is a subtle marvel – it really, truly does take film immersion to the next level, but like I eluded to, only in a subtle way. When I heard about the number of speakers (up to 64) I was concerned that the sound would be over the top and in your face could possibly come off as gimmicky. This was certainly not the case and it was amazing to hear the arrows zoom across the room from the right rear of the theater to the left front of the screen as the arrow would hit the target while Merida was riding Angus (her trusty horse).

The other scene that caught the attention of my ears was the scene where the lords are getting into a brawl after introducing themselves (right after Lord Dingwall sicks Wee Dingwall on Lord Macintosh). There is a table that gets lifted and swung around on the screen and as it swings around, the speakers also follow by creating the swinging sound – it almost sounds like the table was swinging around the room and you could almost feel the whoosh of the air as it swung around. I could go on and on about the scenes that it enhanced, but I would also highlight the scene of the witch’s cauldron as well as the final fight scene between Mor’du and Mum bear.

The layout of the speakers for the theater we saw Brave in (Roosevelt Icon Theater – Chicago, IL) was similar to the quick sketch I did on the iPad. In the sketch, you can see that there were seven speakers on both the right and left walls. There were also six speakers across the back wall and a total of twelve speakers suspended in even rows across the ceiling overhead. With there being “up to” 64 speakers in a Dolby Atmos system, that accounts for 32 speakers – I’m not sure how many total speakers this particular theater had (it can vary), but the remaining number would be located behind the screen.

I truly hope that more and more theaters get this technology installed in them because it really did enhance the movie and take it to a new level. You could argue that since it is so subtle that some people may not notice – for instance, Julie didn’t pick up on as many of the little details as I did (but it didn’t go unrecognized for her though).

Of course, none of this would have sounded as great it if weren’t for the wonderful sound mixing and recording by Skywalker Sound .

To learn more about Dolby Atmos, I really recommend checking out their site where you can watch an intro video about the format as well as see theater diagrams as well – click here to visit the Dolby Atmos site .

UPDATED – July 4, 2012. I stumbled across the video below from Soundworks Collection that discusses the sound of Brave. Although the entire video is good (and I do recommend you watch the whole thing), if you want to hear more discussion on Dolby Atmos, skip ahead to 7:31. Some of the descriptions used for the system match up pretty closely to my assessment – it certainly reinforces my view of Atmos as an amazing system!

MUSIC / SOUNDTRACK

I did a review of the Brave soundtrack prior to viewing the movie so I wouldn’t have any association with the images on screen and I was pretty close on a lot of my assessments – but the one thing that surprised me the most was how much more I liked the songs after seeing the movie. To me, that means that the soundtrack meshed really well with the movie and supplemented the images on screen perfectly. When I first reviewed the soundtrack, I liked the songs, “Touch the Sky” and “Into the Open Air”, but after seeing the movie and the scenes they were in, they mean so much more now. Also, I was more critical of “Song Of Mor’du” but I saw how it fit within the movie now and its purpose – now it’s stuck in my head all the time. Heck, Julie and I were singing it after we left the theater both times. For in-depth details on the tracks, be sure to check out our review of the soundtrack .

VISUALS & ORGANICS

Julie and I were both mesmerized by the details in the visual aspect of the movie. Julie’s most memorable scenes were when Merida and Angus were walking through the woods – she loved how real the light looked on Angus as they walked through the trees. She also really liked the river scene where Merida falls into the water – she appreciated that Merida’s hair truly looked wet and how it slowly dried over time rather than just being dry as soon as they cut to the next scene. I was just floored with how amazing the fog looked as Merida and Mum bear followed the wisps up to the castle where Mor’du was. The way the light threaded throughout the fog added an extra layer of intensity to the scene that wouldn’t have been there otherwise.

WRAP UP & OTHER VARIOUS THOUGHTS

One thing I really noticed is how much “life” the characters had in their emotions. When King Fergus is laughing with Merida and says that Young Macguffin would rather be holding up bridges than shooting a bow, the look he gives Merida is so perfect and realistic. Also, when Merida is crying at the end, after she has put the tapestry over her Mom and wants her to turn back into her human self, the emotion on Merida’s face was animated to perfection (at least in my opinion).

We also wanted to make sure that we noted the amazing vocal work of the cast who helped bring the characters to life. Kelly Macdonald did such an amazing job with Merida that I couldn’t have imagined her voice by anyone else. Kelly also stunned us with how emotion-filled her voice was when Angus tossed her into the standing stones for the first time – when she yells, “Angus” and continues to cry – it is so believable that you can feel it.

We liked the movie so much we saw it twice over the opening weekend and may see it again since there are always little things you pick up over each viewing. For instance, Julie noticed the snowflakes during the credits and wondered if that was a tribute to the snow scenes that were removed from the movie (you can read more about the snow scenes in our The Art of Brave book review ).

Oh, we also loved the tribute to Steve Jobs during the credits – it was a really nice touch and a great honor to a man that, although having his quirks, assisted with changing the face of animation as we know it.

In case you haven’t seen it already too, make sure to watch through the end of the credits as well as there is a brief scene with the wood trinkets.

EASTER EGGS

If you don’t want to know about any of the films easter eggs, we’d suggest you stop reading now!

Found List:

Pizza Planet Truck – The truck, which can be found in every movie (except for The Incredibles), can be found in the witch’s cottage as a wood trinket. Once the Blu Ray hits stores, we’ll provide a screencap of course. Updated July 3, 2012 – a screenshot of the Pizza Planet Truck has been revealed – click here to read more .

Pixar Brave Pizza Planet Truck Easter Egg Carving

Newt – Since so many witch’s potions contain an “eye of newt”, it only made sense that her potion would contain Newt as a whole. It was almost a way to say goodbye to the story altogether – poor Newt!

John Ratzenberger – John, Pixar’s good luck charm (who voices a character in each movie), voiced the guard who didn’t get his mustache trimmed by the triplets – his name was Gordon and he only said just a few words – I believe it was something like, “the arrival of the lords” and then got slammed by the doors as the lords came marching through.

FOUND – Pixar/Luxo Ball – The Pixar ball has made an appearance in every Pixar film since the second short film, Luxo Jr. In Brave, it is speculated that it was on a shield in the ruins. Any confirmation on this?

FOUND – A113 – The classroom at Cal Arts where many of the Pixarians graduated from college graces the screen in every Pixar movie (and even some non-Pixar movies). The placement of this has been talked about a lot and there are a lot of bad screenshots showing where people think it may be, but still not 100% confirmed.

Hidden Character from the next Pixar film – Quite often, Pixar hides a character from an upcoming movie. No one has really chimed in with this one yet, but we’ll see what comes up – have you seen anything? Did you also know that Brave was featured in the Pixar Treasures book that came out in 2010?

I’m wondering if there could be anything else in any upcoming books – we’ll have to keep our eyes peeled. Updated July 3, 2012 – it was revealed that Sulley from Monsters University was included as a Celtic burning in the witch’s hut – click here to read more .

Pixar Brave Sulley Monsters University Easter Egg

UPDATE – GIVEAWAY HAS ENDED

Now that you’ve read our review, let’s talk about some ways you can win a free copy of The Art of Brave. You can have up to seven entries to win the book and here are the guidelines:

1) The contest is only open to residents of the 48 contiguous United States. We apologize to our international readers (or AK or HI residents), but since we’re picking up the cost of the shipping, we ask for your understanding in this regard.

2) The contest will be open between the dates of June 29, 2012, at Midnight Eastern Standard Time (EST) and July 13, 2012, 11:59 PM EST.

3) The winner will be announced by first name and last initial on our website no later than July 16, 2012, 11:59 PM EST.

4) How can you enter up to seven times? Note – there is only one entry method that is required and the rest are optional so enter once or for all seven, it’s up to you.

a) Like us on Facebook (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

b) Follow us on Twitter (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

c) Follow us on Google+ (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

d) Follow us on Pinterest (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

e) Subscribe to our YouTube Channel – (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

f) Leave a comment on this post (below) about your thoughts on Brave as well as whether you prefer to read movie reviews as an audio review or the text writeup (Optional Entry – must also complete the online form in step g)

g) This is the required step if you just want to enter once, or if you’ve entered via any of the methods above, you must ALSO complete this step ( UPDATED: The link has been removed since the contest is closed). This online survey will let us know which sites you followed us on and how we can contact you if you win the drawing for The Art of Brave.

Please let us know if you have any questions or comments in regards to our contest and we wish you luck.

Mark Andrews
Movie Review

Our first official contest – Win The Art of Brave book

Autographed La Luna Storybook and Bambino Plush Review

Brave Disney Store Limited Edition Merida Doll

Review of Limited Edition Merida Doll

Brave Easter Eggs Revealed

I absolutely loved the movie! I thought it had an incredible storyline and the details of the scenery were amazing! I prefer reading the reviews in the text format though 🙂

I loved Brave! I gave it 4 stars. But as time goes on, I appear to be less enamored with it. Granted, I do need to see it again. But it falls in the middle of the pack of all Pixar films for me. We did an audio review of Brave on our podcast, The Rotoscopers. Check it out for a LONGER version of my thoughts on the film: Episode 13 (spoiler free) and Episode 14 (with spoilers). Keep up the great work guys!

Thanks Morgan, it's interesting how movies do that – how they build and then sometimes fall in our minds. This one hasn't fallen for us, but I understand how it can/could for some people.Keep up the great work yourself as well! :)T.J.

Merida is epic, crazy, wild and loveable. My motto is “embrace your inner weirdo” ie; be yourself no matter what others may think. You did a wonderful job bringing this story to life. I’ve seen a lot of Disney movies and Brave is a great movie in a very different way. As far as the sound… I saw “Earthquake” in Dolby Surround Sound in the 70.s, and I thought that was Awesome… I love the advances in technology, This new Dolby sound puts the old Dolby sound to shame. You guys did a great job on this film. Thank you for sharing your dream… looking forward to your next endeavor. 

My thoughts on Brave are that it was a wonderful adventure and I felt like I could relate to Merida as far as her tanacity and crazy curls! I watched the movie twice at AMC but have not seen it in 3d or with dolby atmos which I am now excited to try; since I am in the chicago land area I'm going to research more about this Roosevelt Icon theatre that was mentioned in your review. Also, I enjoyed listening to the recording of the review as well as following along. The recording had more personality and I was fine with the fact that it didn't exactly match up with the written review because then I could go back anyways to read anything I may have missed. thanks!-Surai

Hey Amanda, Thank you for your comments! We also agree on the cave scene with her hair – overall, I don't think anyone could say anything bad about her hair – it was a technical accomplishment and then pulled it off wonderfully! I'm also excited to hear that your favorite movie is Ratatouille – I absolutely love that one as well and sometimes I think it gets forgotten among the other greats (Toy Story, Monsters Inc, etc). I can't believe how wonderful the lighting & shading was in Ratatouille – it was just perfect (at least to me)! Anyway – thanks again and good luck on the contest, we received your entires! T.J.

I only saw the movie once, but now that I hear/read (listened and read over) your review, I can't wait to see it again! You pointed out a lot of things I missed, subtleties that were lost in the excitement of merely being able to finally see the film after months of waiting. My theater didn't have a great sound system like the one you described. In fact, it was pretty lousy, but I thoroughly enjoyed the film nonetheless. I love how you mention Merida's hair being wet and the dampness keeping a sense of continuity throughout the following scenes. It looks amazing when it's dry, but I thought it looked absolutely incredible when it was wet. The epitome of Pixar's artistic brilliance shone (ironically) in the dark cave scene when Merida has her cloak on and her hair lies limp through the hood. Though Brave isn't quite my favorite Pixar film (that spot is reserved for Ratatouille) it met all my expectations and then some. It is a great movie and deserves to be celebrated. Thank you for putting efoort into sharing your thoughts and putting together this review!

Thanks Greg – We appreciate the kind words and I'm glad to hear you also agree with our review. If there's ever anything we can improve on, answer for you or help with, just let us know – we love to help our our fellow Pixar friends! T.J.

Loved the movie, your review is spot on! My wife and I saw it in 2d and loved it. Visually the movie was amazing, I agree 100% with what you said about it being an improvement on \”princess movies!\” Love the blog, keep up the awesome job you guys are doing! #pixarpost

I guess I have to admit that my expectations were higher, but the level they've defaulted at is so high, Carl's house couldn't reach it. Pixar forever.

We couldn't agree more! Thank you for your comments.

A lot of animated movies these days attempt to appeal to “the whole family” by pitching their story’s complexity at the pre-school level and maybe tacking on an arch pop culture reference to appeal to the older crowd. Movies like Brave are layered enough to appeal to different generations on different levels – I love that!

That's great that Merida has \”spoken\” to you so much. That's also why Pixar is so unique – they put their twist on something to make it new and fresh! Good luck on the contest – we received your entries! 🙂

I'm so hooked on Brave its slowly ranking higher than Twilight with me!I can't understand why people have said its another princess movie,Merida is wild and full of this exuberant charm and seeing nothing but trailers and posters and non stop adds for this movie I loved her from square one and waited for the release of the Disney stores limited edition doll, I almost didn't get her which would have made me sad seeing as before Merida the only other girl with freckles was Rapunzle and she tho good was lacking the wild firey ginger hair that I have, crookid smilee blue eyes and the yearning to follow her own fate!To me she is the absolute best I feel for her a lot and I plan on cosplaying as her because she's that awesome!I don't see any other princesses wielding bows and arrows and swords and putting herself in danger.Not to sound like a total b word here but Merida put all the other disney princesses to utter shame, she's not a steriotype and she actually promotes a good point of be you and not some silly little damsel in distress waiting for prince charming to whisk you away to some awesome life that rarely ever happens.In ending I am so team Merida!!!

The movie was stupendous, bringing me and my Mom closer. It made me cry and laugh. I believe the message is, \”You don't know what you have, until it's gone.\”

I've seen Brave once in 2D and once in 3D, and I ADORED it! I loved the stunning visuals and amazing music as always, and I really connected with the story. I'm planning on seeing it a third time with just my mom, and hoping that we can learn to understand each other just like Merida. I tend to prefer to read movie reviews, rather than listen, but if it's Pixar I don't care! 😀

I really love the animation in the scenes I've seen from the movie so far, especially the one where Merida shoots the third arrow in the contest and it goes straight through the one already on the target. And the clincher was when she turned around and her mother was right in her face. I really enjoy reading reviews about movies I like, especially when they catch onto things I didn't notice or go more in depth into aspects I am thinking about – gives more room for thought. I really enjoyed reading your review. The audio was great but as a reader used to paper books, I enjoyed the visual review more than the audio one.

I saw Brave twice in 3D—once by myself on opening day and the second time to share it with my siblings and another friend of ours! Being a teenage boy, I probably looked much less odd on the second trip haha. I'm a Pixar geek and so I don't really mind either way. 😀

Another good review as always. It's like you guys are thinking exactly what I'm thinking. Great job!

Thanks for your feedback Ben – it is very much appreciated. You're site is also very informative as well – thanks for Everything Pixar! I agree that the rating should be higher than it is – but it's hard when a company has had such big success early on to maintain that rating – people often look more critically at a film when they already have expectations of a studio. It will be hard for them to hit those high of numbers again (at least for a while). T.J.

Ahh – we'll have to keep an eye out for that next time!

I thought that Brave was the perfect mix of Pixar's work. From the beautiful landscape to the amazing characters and epic story, Brave won my heart in a way that no other movie has. I love Merida and her fantastic character. I loved how I could relate to her on so many different levels. Brave truly is a masterpiece that should be enjoyed by everyone. It really saddens me that it didn't get that great of critical acclaim by many critics. To me, Brave deserves at least a 95% on Rotten Tomatoes. Oh and I like listening to movie reviews more than reading. It's nice to be able to hear what the blogger's emotions are! I'm not just saying this because its nice, but I really enjoy reading your blog and following you on twitter! You put together a fantastic review of Brave and I can't wait for more!

Also; i am not sure where it is located, but I hear that the A113 is in the movie and written in Roman Numerals. look for ACXIII.

Julie- I agree with your thoughts on the 2d vs 3d. I heard in an interview (in fact it may be the google talk one) with Mark Andrews that he is not a huge fan of 3d. So I did not expect the 3d to be amazing. There is so much depth in the artwork in Brave already that 3d almost doesn't work for it. Just my thoughts.I really enjoyed Brave though, it's an absolutely breathtaking film. I've seen it twice already and plan on seeing it at least 2 more times.

Hey Joe, Thanks for the feedback on preferring the written format. FYI – we also got your entries to the contest – good luck!

I really enjoyed Brave, much more than I expected. This was a great review. I did not listen to the audio version, as I tend to do other things while on the internet, so I always enjoy having a written version. I am very appreciative of that. But I enjoyed the details you picked out, such as the lighting and Merida's wet hair (which I was particularly stunned at how believable it looked, really amazing). I only saw the film once, so I was unable to catch many little things, but after reading this review, I'll definitely look for them in the blu-ray release. Now, Brave wasn't something I instantly attached to, but the more I think about it, the more I like it. This tends to happen with most Pixar films. The more you notice tiny details, the more you realize how everything comes together. Once again, great review!

Hey Jeff – thanks for the feedback on the audio portion of the review…always good info! In regards to the 3D, I'll be interested to see what you think – the person that left a comment on the blog right before you said that their 3D experience was a disappointment. Talk soon.

I hear you on having to absorb some Pixar movies. It was kind of that way for Cars 2 for me – at first I was unsure, but now I really, really like it. Hopefully Brave will be the same for you. 🙂

Another great review, thanks TJ and Julie! I loved Brave! I thought the story and characters were wonderful, and the sets, animation and sound were just amazing. I need to see it again to pick up on things I missed and try to find the Easter eggs. I've also heard from others that the 3D is very good in Brave; I'm not a fan of 3D but think I'll try seeing it in 3D – if anyone will make good use of 3D it would be Pixar.I like both reading reviews and audio reviews, but I would probably lean towards reading, unless it was a full podcast that I can download from iTunes – I listen to a few podcasts while driving to/from work.Thanks again for the great and thorough review!

We saw the 3D version of Brave and were disappointed, not so much in the movie, but in the 3D experience. Sitting dead-center of the theater, we expected to have an 'optimal' view but, overall, there was a definite blurred effect, even during static scenes, that just gave it a muddied look. It's possible that there were issues with the way it was displayed at the theater we were in. This was a big disappointment, since we really appreciate the attention to detail and depth of color, etc. even in the 2D versions of Pixar films. Otherwise, we thought Brave was a good, not great, Pixar effort. Being fans of nearly everything they do, it was a mild disappointment. I have found that, after a few viewings, I come to like, and sometimes love, Pixar movies that I wasn't altogether impressed with the first time around. I'm hopeful that Brave will be one of those.

I haven't seen Brave yet, but after listening (!!! LOVED being able to listen to it), I can't wait! Was just watching The Pixar Story documentary last night and can't believe the technological advancements they've made since Toy Story!

Venom: The Last Dance

Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddi... Read all Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddie's last dance. Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddie's last dance.

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Anthony Mackie Reveals New Look at Captain America 4 to Celebrate Independence Day

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Anthony Mackie celebrated Independence Day with a new look at Captain America: Brave New World . It provides a new sneak peek at Mackie's return as Sam Wilson, now serving as the new Captain America after Chris Evans' Steve Rogers passed on the shield.

On Instagram , Mackie posted an image of himself on the set of the upcoming Marvel Cinematic Universe movie . He's suited up in his superhero gero and holding the iconic Captain America shield. In the caption of the post, shared on July 4, Mackie noted, "Happy Birthday America! Have a great 4th, see you soon..." The post can be seen below.

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Julius Onah is the director of Captain America: Brave New World , which is written by Malcolm Spellman, Dalan Musson, and Matthew Orton. The movie will also feature Harrison Ford as Thunderbolt Ross, and it's expected that he will transform into Red Hulk. The Incredible Hulk stars Tim Blake Nelson (Leader) and Liv Tyler (Betty Ross) are also reprising their roles in the movie. Other stars include Danny Ramirez, Carl Lumbly, Shira Haas, Rosa Salazar, Seth Rollins, and Giancarlo Esposito .

Captain America: Brave New World will be released in theaters on Feb. 14, 2025.

Source: Anthony Mackie on Instagram

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Barbie review: Welcome to Greta Gerwig's fiercely funny, feminist Dreamhouse

The Barbie movie could’ve been another forgettable, IP-driven cash grab. Instead, the director of Little Women and Lady Bird has crafted a neon pink delight.

Devan Coggan (rhymes with seven slogan) is a senior writer at Entertainment Weekly. Most of her personality is just John Mulaney quotes and Lord of the Rings references.

When Warner Bros. announced plans to launch a Barbie movie, the entire premise sounded a bit like a game of Hollywood Mad Libs gone wrong: Quick, name a beloved indie director ( Greta Gerwig !), an unadapted piece of intellectual property (Barbie dolls!), and an adjective (neon pink!). Every new piece of information that trickled out on the (lengthy) press tour seemed stranger than the last. Gerwig ( Lady Bird , Little Women ) cited 2001: A Space Odyssey and Gene Kelly musicals as her biggest inspirations. Elaborate dance numbers were teased. Ryan Gosling gave a lot of quotes about something called " Kenergy ." What actually was this movie, and could it possibly live up to all that hot pink buzz?

The verdict? Never doubt Gerwig. The Oscar-nominated filmmaker has crafted a fierce, funny, and deeply feminist adventure that dares you to laugh and cry, even if you're made of plastic. It's certainly the only summer blockbuster to pair insightful criticisms of the wage gap with goofy gags about Kens threatening to "beach" each other off.

The film (in theaters this Friday) whisks viewers away to Barbie Land, a candy-colored toy box wonderland of endless sunshine. It's there that our titular heroine ( Margot Robbie ) spends her days, each just as magical and neon as the one before. There are always other Barbies to party with — including Doctor Barbie ( Hari Nef ), President Barbie ( Issa Rae ), and Mermaid Barbie ( Dua Lipa ) — as well as an endless supply of devoted Kens, led by Gosling's frequently shirtless boy-toy. It's a plastic paradise for Robbie's Stereotypical Barbie, the type of doll that immediately comes to mind when you think of Barbie.

But something's gone wrong. Her Malibu Dreamhouse malfunctions; her mind is clouded by un-Barbie-like thoughts of death; and her perfectly arched feet now fall flat on the floor. So, our heroine sets out to seek some answers from Barbie Land's pseudo mystic, Weird Barbie ( Kate McKinnon ), who says a rift has opened up between their world and the real world, and she must brave the long trek to Los Angeles to find the human playing with her doll to remedy the situation. You bet her ever-loyal Ken (Gosling) is coming along for the ride.

Once Barbie and Ken begin roller-blading around L.A., however, they both realize that they've essentially entered a mirror dimension. Where are the female presidents, the CEOs, the astronauts? Barbie was supposed to empower young girls to dream big, but she hasn't had the feminist effect she anticipated — and in fact, she might have made things worse. Gerwig tackles the doll's complicated legacy head on, exploring how Barbie's reputation here isn't one of leadership or creativity but of corporatized objectification. Barbie herself is horrified, facing crude comments and misogyny for the first time in her (plastic) life. But to Ken, this newfound idea of patriarchy is intoxicating, and he quickly enters a spiral of masculinity, luxuriating in trucks, cowboy hats, and the addictive thrill of power.

Gosling has already scored praise for his earnest himbo performance, and in truth, he steals the show. For an actor who's spent much of his career brooding moodily (see: Blade Runner 2049 , Drive , First Man ), here, he finally gets to tap into his inner Mouseketeer , dramatically draping himself at Barbie's feet or breaking into a shirtless power ballad called "I'm Just Ken." His Ken has very little going on inside his brain, but his heart is brimming with emotion: love and admiration for Barbie, a longing for masculine validation, and a wide-eyed curiosity about the world around him.

Robbie still remains the real star of Barbie . Physically, the blonde Australian actress already looks like she stepped out of a Mattel box (something the film itself plays on during one particular gag), but she gives an impressively transformative performance, moving her arms and joints like they're actually made of plastic. Robbie has brought a manic physicality to previous films including Babylon and Birds of Prey , but she now embraces physical comedy to the max. (At one point, she face-plants on the floor, limbs askew like a toy dropped by a toddler.) As Barbie begins to discover more about the real world, Robbie's performance gradually shifts to become more human. One of the most moving moments comes about halfway through the film, as Barbie perches quietly on a park bench, silently observing the humans around her.

If the film has a flaw, it's that Barbie and Ken are so delightful that their real-world counterparts feel dull by comparison. America Ferrera and Ariana Greenblatt play a frazzled mother and her sardonic teen daughter, who've drifted apart over time. Ferrera fills her days at her boring Mattel office job by doodling alternative Barbies, ones that are plagued by cellulite or haunted by thoughts of death. Her feminist daughter is dismissive of everything Barbie represents, dressing down Robbie with a pointed sneer. Ferrera admirably delivers one of the film's biggest emotional speeches, but surprisingly, the human characters never feel quite as lived-in as their plastic doll companions.

Still, Barbie works hard to entertain both 11-year-old girls and the parents who'll bring them to the theater. Gerwig co-wrote the script with her partner and longtime collaborator Noah Baumbach , and the entire screenplay is packed with winking one-liners, the kind that reward a rewatch. The fear is that Hollywood will learn the wrong message from Barbie, rushing to green-light films about every toy gathering dust on a kid's playroom floor. (What's next, The Funko Pop Movie? Furby: Fully Loaded? We already have a Bobbleheads movie , so maybe we're already there.) But it's Gerwig's care and attention to detail that gives Barbie an actual point of view , elevating it beyond every other cynical, IP-driven cash grab. Turns out that life in plastic really can be fantastic. Grade: A-

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Marko: Beyond Brave - Official Release Date Trailer

Explore various locations, check out gameplay, and see enemies in this trailer for Marko: Beyond Brave, an upcoming Metroidvania that combines ‘90s Disney cartoons with Slavic folklore. Marko: Beyond Brave will be available on Windows PC via Steam on September 17, 2024. A playable demo is currently available on Steam.

In Marko: Beyond Brave, entropy has escaped its prison and threatens to engulf the world. Step into the shoes of titular protagonist Marko, a young warrior who uncovers a secret power hidden within. Armed with a large greatsword and an even bigger mustache, Marko will brave ancient evils, battle mythical creatures, and forge powerful alliances to restore balance. With elemental powers at your command and every decision shaping the world's fate, embark on a thrilling adventure where courage is your greatest weapon.

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Spain-france leads record-setting copa america & european championship semifinals for fox, comics on the rise: raanan hershberg doubles down with new specials ‘brave,’ ‘it could have been better’.

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Comedian Raanan Hershberg Sets Release Date For Comedy Dynamics Special ‘It Could Have Been Better’

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The best jokes, Hershberg finds — those that perhaps “have more importance right now than ever,” in his mind — are those that “make fun of all ideologies and allow people to come together.”

While his Comedy Dynamics special It Could Have Been Better reflects on Hershberg’s Jewish upbringing in Kentucky and his overbearing mother, it’s less thematically driven and more of “a collection of jokes,” a “best of” from his recent catalogue that will hopefully win him new fans — “which is important,” he says, “because I feel like a lot of people still don’t know me.”

Though in the past, Hershberg has joked that at age 40, a lot of people think he’s younger because he’s had “so few accomplishments,” he’s in truth one of the sharpest up-and-coming comics emerging from an exceptionally vibrant current New York scene. Coming to contemplate a career in comedy in college, after flirting with the idea of life as a playwright, his foremost inspiration at the time, “for better or worse,” was comedian Doug Stanhope.

Before building his career out on the road, Hershberg began trying his hand at comedy in his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, focusing at first only on learning “how to make rednecks laugh.” At this stage, he says, his material didn’t have to be unique. All that was important was cracking the code on “how to make people laugh, no matter [what].”

It was after moving to New York that Hershberg began to be more discriminating about his material, making his jokes “tighter” and coming to prioritize jokes of personal meaning to him. “And now with comedy, I think for the most part, I try to do jokes that I really care about,” he says. “Because that’s ultimately what matters. When you’re saying a joke, do you care about this?”

In addition to Stanhope, Hershberg was highly influenced by Kathleen Madigan — the first comic to take him on the road — as well as Louis C.K. and British comedian Stewart Lee. From Madigan, he learned to find universality within the personal; from C.K., how to bring the “chaotic emotions” behind the jokes to each performance, rather than letting any bit become rote. Of all the comics he steals from, Hershberg says, he perhaps steals most openly from Lee, whose “deconstruction of comedy…creates almost a bigger level of intimacy with the audience because…he almost lets them get in on the secret.”

First beginning to make a name for himself with the YouTube specials Downhill Ever Since and Jokes from the Underground — the latter of which was named as part of the New York Times’ ‘Best of Comedy 2022’ — Hershberg has also built a cult following with Joe and Raanan Talks Movies , a podcast dissecting films through the prism of a comedian’s mind, which he co-hosts with fellow comic Joe List.

For Hershberg, there’s great appeal to the route of going straight to his audience through YouTube, given the ability to “micromanage” every aspect of his content and the immediate feedback he receives — though he’s more than aware that when it comes in, it won’t all be positive. It’s a “weird world” right now, he says, for a self-starting performer looking to build a career on the world wide web, given algorithms’ tendency to thrive on “hate and division.”

Over the years, Hershberg has found himself subjected to no small amount of antisemitism, though he has to admit that fat jokes hurt worse. “Because antisemitism is just so blatantly wrong, and I’m also not like, ‘Oh no, I lost my antisemitic fan,'” he jokes. “I struggle with my weight; I don’t struggle with my Judaism. So it can be a little more upsetting.”

What’s helped him learn to manage negative comments is threefold. Observing that “a true troll will sh*t on something even if it’s good,” he’s also come to recognize that “if you’re writing a mean comment, you must be so depressed in your life.” With that perspective in mind, Hershberg is also aware of the double-edged sword of negative comments — it’s perhaps only when they start coming in that you can really say you’ve made an impact. Says Hershberg, “You almost have to feel bad to feel good, or also if you feel too good, you feel bad because it means not enough people have watched it yet.”

Currently prepping a new hour that deals with “Israel and Palestine…being Jewish right now, and a lot of relationship material,” Hershberg’s next milestone is coming up in August, when he fulfills his longtime dream of being a filmmaker, commencing production on Memory Room . Co-written and directed with Dan McCabe, the crowdfunded, 20-minute short is about a caretaker for a man with dementia who comes to suspect the patient is a murderer.

While working to build that career, Hershberg’s focus as a comedian is constant forward motion — not to have a special acquired by Netflix, necessarily, but to continue figuring out how to “reveal” himself on stage more and more.

Says Hershberg, “I think if you keep on working out new material and keep on getting tapped out and having to write more and more material, you’re eventually forced to dig deeper into who you are, and I think that’s, to me, the goal. You can always dig deeper into yourself and have jokes that express more of who you are deep down.”

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