Pixar’s latest disports tremendous visual panache, vivacious voice casting and a dose of wicked humour.
As I bought my ticket for Brave, I thought of Lars von Trier’s aversion to animation in The Five Obstructions:
“I hate cartoons.”
Being an absolute film Nazi, I felt inclined to agree.
Brave just may have proved me wrong.
The thirty-three year old animation studio’s first fairytale follows the tomboyish Princess Merida (Kelly Macdonald) who refuses to consent to an arranged marriage championed by her parents.
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Convinced that a simple witch’s spell will persuade her mother otherwise, Merida inadvertently turns Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson) into a bear. Chaos ensues, complete with your obligatory happy family ending, conveniently free of forced marriage.
Conventional as the rosy outcome of Brave’s troubled mother-daughter relationship might sound, it does not resort to the saccharine. Out of the clichéd teenage angst develops an engaging poignancy that is paralleled in few contemporary Hollywood animated flicks.
Special mention must go to Kelly Macdonald: the driving force behind screenwriter Brenda Chapman’s ginger-haired protagonist. Reeling from the well-deserved success of HBO’s Emmy-winning Boardwalk Empire, Macdonald dazzles in this delirious role; it is evident her talent is in no way limited to live-action.
Brave may not contain the most realistic denouement nor is it likely to win a Best Animated Feature Oscar (like six of its predecessors) but it is an achievement for Pixar. Go watch it.
N.B. Throw on a pair of jeans or a jumper before you enter the cinema: Brave’s family fantasy may warm the cockles of your heart but you will almost certainly freeze under the wrath of Majestic City’s air-conditioning system!
Review by Rehan Alexander Mudannayake
Brave (2012)
Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.
Directors: Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
Writers: Brenda Chapman (story), Mark Andrews (screenplay)
Stars: Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly and Emma Thompson
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SVKwKhqin0Y
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