Finding Nemo, of course, deserves huge credit for building the foundation for Dory’s popularity now.
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The graphic imagery in this film captures the vivid ocean ecosystem in a realistic and colorful way, and the film’s humor is even more whimsical than “Finding Nemo”.
All of the colorful fish are back in the Disney-Pixar “Nemo” sequel, “Finding Dory”. A sequel to 2003’s Finding Nemo, this one focuses on the blue tang fish (voiced by Ellen DeGeneres) who has suffered from short-term memory loss her entire life.
Unfortunately, efforts like Finding Dory, while perfectly pleasant, do little to quell the feeling that a certain measure of rubber-stamp efficiency has gripped the studio. And that makes this movie resonate long after you’re done laughing and crying.
Tears aside, “Finding Dory” is mostly a jolly aquatic adventure, as Dory teams up with Marlin (Albert Brooks) and his son Nemo (Hayden Rolence) on a mission to find her parents. A near-sighted whale shark Destiny and her Beluga whale pal Bailey (Ty Burrell) regularly step up to help Dory navigate her way out of danger. Off!” (Even more ideal casting: “Idris Elba and Dominic West, former co-stars on “The Wire”, voice the sea lions.) And the animation, with its rich underwater colors and expressive faces (fishly scorn is done especially well), is a richly textured joy; even the 3D is subtly effective.
The film, like all other Pixar films, radiates a powerful message of the importance of family and fighting for your loved ones.
Ellen DeGeneres is once again the heart of the film as Dory.
Assuming Finding Dory performs as projected, the film’s ticket sales would be enough to dethrone current animated top dog, DreamWorks Animation’s Shrek the Third, which opened to $121.63 million in 2007.
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“Finding Dory” surprisingly defeats its critically acclaimed predecessor in nearly every sense. It’s sweet and consistently amusing, but never breaks new ground.
