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FINDING NEMO
by Peter Sobczynski

May 30, 2003

(out of 4 stars)

FILM CREDITS: Written by Andrew Stanton, Bob Peterson & David Reynolds. Directed by Andrew Stanton. Starring the voices of Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Willem Dafoe and Geoffrey Rush. Rated G. 101 minutes. A Disney/Pixar release.

"Finding Nemo", the latest effort from Pixar, the creators of such modern classics as "A Bug’s Life", "Monsters Inc" and the two "Toy Story" films, is such a wonderful film-funny, scary and strangely touching-that it is hard to believe that only a few months ago, there were rumors swirling the Internet suggesting that the film was somehow going to be a disappointment in comparison to their other films. However, this is anything but a disappointment-in fact, it could be argued that this is their finest film to date-and, in fact, it is one of the few animated films in recent years that actually deserves comparison to the famous Disney classics of old. At a time when Disney themselves seem flummoxed as to how to make a entertaining film, Pixar (whose films are distributed by Disney) continues to knock them out of the park with an ease that is almost frightening to behold.

Speaking of frightening, the opening sequence of "Finding Nemo" is a scene that will no doubt traumatize small children in the same way that the killing of Bambi’s mom affected earlier generations. Set in the ocean, the film kicks off with clownfish Marlin (Albert Brooks) settling down in a new habitat on the Great Barrier Reef with his wife and thousands of eggs waiting to be hatched. This idyll is shattered when a barracuda appears and does what barracudas do, leaving only Marlin and one egg alive. After this catastrophe, Marlin becomes fiercely overprotective of his son, Nemo (Alexander Gould), and is forever trying to keep him from ever venturing off on his own.

Things come to a head on the first day of school where Marlin’s neurotic behavior embarrasses Nemo and causes him to swim off on his own during a field trip. Disaster strikes and a diver captures Nemo and carries him away on a boat. Panicked, Marlin takes off after the boat in a desperate effort to save his son but soon loses the trail. Crestfallen, Marlin continues to pursue his son who, unbeknownst to him, is now residing in a fish tank in Sydney, Australia. This isn’t as swell as it sounds because Nemo is going to be presented as a gift to a hideous little girl whose pet fish always wind up...well, swimming with the fishes.

Every creature on a journey needs a sidekick and Marlin gets a doozy in Dory (Ellen DeGeneres), a sweet-but-dizzy creature who acts the way that Gracie Allen might have if she were born with fins. She has short-term memory loss, for starters, and she claims to have skills (such as the ability to talk to whales) that may well not exist, yet she is fiercely loyal to Marlin and his quest even when he treats her harshly. Back in Sydney, Nemo is befriended by the other denizens of the tank, led by tough-guy Gil (Willem Dafoe), and they launch a series of clever plans to allow Nemo to escape his certain fate (and yes, you will be surprised what a group of fish can come up with when they put their minds to it.)

The basic story of "Finding Nemo" is pretty standard stuff- an epic journey whose final resolution is never really in doubt-and the trick is to throw enough clever twists and turns to overcome the essential predictability of the plot. That is exactly what director Andrew Stanton (who has had a hand in all the previous Pixar films) and his screenwriters have done here. They manage to come up with a seemingly endless array moments that are alternately hilarious, thrilling, moving-sometimes all at once-that will appeal equally to children and grown-ups alike. In fact, even though "Finding Nemo" is a cartoon mostly aimed at younger viewers, the screenplay is smarter and more intelligently constructed than most so-called "adult" movies in recent memory.

The best example of what they have done is the first big set-piece of the journey, in which Marlin and Dory encounter a Great White shark, who, in an in-joke that will appeal to "Jaws" fans, is named Bruce (Barry Humphries). However, the scene doesn’t turn into a mindless chase scene; it turns out that Bruce is a recovering fish addict and brings Marlin and Dory to his 12-step meeting where he announces that it has been three weeks since his last fish. Matters take a turn for the worse, however, when Dory gets a bloody nose, Bruce gets a whiff of the blood and then begins chasing after them (while he himself is being pursued by his sponsors, who are trying to prevent him from slipping into bad habits). The whole sequence is a fast, funny and exciting gem that shows Pixar at its best. There are plenty of silly moments for the kids as well as more sophisticated jokes for the grown-ups and while the chase itself is thrilling enough on its own (and even throws in a priceless homage to "The Shining" to boot), it is even more effective because while we want Marlin and Dory to survive, it isn’t hard to sympathize with Bruce as well. After all, he doesn’t necessarily want to eat the two but he is fighting thousands of years of evolution.

It is the ability to effectively apply human behavior and emotions to non-human creatures that has always been the secret to the success of Pixar’s films and not their technical achievements (although this one is as visually stunning as their other works). This is partly because they generally choose talented actors to provide the voices (Brooks, for example, is great at hitting the laugh lines but he also pulls off the quieter, more dramatic moments as well) and because they always approach their characters as real people with real feelings and they don’t simply treat them as "cartoon characters." This is, of course, the approach that Disney Studios used to take years ago and if they ever hope to retain their former glory, it is an approach that they might want to try again pretty soon.
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-- PETER SOBCZYNSKI

Copyright © 2003 Peter Sobczynski
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While the views expressed by Peter Sobczynski do not necessarily reflect the views of Criticdoctor.com, the Critic Doctor will occasionally examine Mr. Sobczynski's film reviews to bring forth an honest examination of those views expressed.