They wish they were as good as Pixar.Īlso, I saw the film (reluctantly) in 3D. I can’t remember a more pathetic, unfunny, by-the-numbers movie trailer. That link takes you to the trailer for Paranorman, one that the theater aired before Brave. I would expect this kind of thing from Laika Entertainment, but not from Pixar. As if someone, somewhere wrote an amazing mother/daughter story set in ancient Scotland…only for somebody else to come along to throw a bunch of weirdness and slapstick comedy into the mix. They’re Pixar, for crying out loud! And there are hints at greatness throughout Brave. I don’t think expecting greatness from Pixar is out of the question. I feel like the people at Pixar should have been able to do a better job in telling the story. The plot is about Merida and her mother coming to understand one another, but the story of how they get there actually takes away from the overall film. But it’s just so ridiculous that I think it detracts from the very point of the film. There will be SPOILERS in my review, so I don’t want to give away what this change is in this opening segment. I am willing to accept that everybody else may love what happens, but I found it to be incredibly silly. But this change is so integral to the story of Brave that the entire experience suffers. Unfortunately, what starts out as a pretty great film suddenly veers into absurdism about a third of the way through. And along with the depth of character, a wonderful visual style, the cornucopia of Scottish accents, and all around skilled craftsmanship, Brave is another fine addition to Pixar’s library.

Fortunately, the drama is very well done, as is the emotional story between Princess Merida and her mother the Queen. But I’m not a fan, so a lot of the comedy was just a drag to me.

The kids will love this film due to an overreliance on slapstick comedy. Pixar’s Brave is a beautifully-rendered tale about a mother and daughter that has a lot of heart, but then takes a few missteps that keep it from achieving true greatness.

Brave characters bear queen