Not Pixar’s best fish in the sea… 

Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) lost her parents since she was a young fish. Now, she lives with clownfish Marlin (Albert Brooks) and his son, Nemo (Hayden Rolence). Sooner or later, Dory loses her clownfish friends too, and decides to search for her real parents. Marlin and Nemo must go on the search for Dory…will they find her?

You’d think with after 13 years of advancements in technology, that a sequel would feel fresh and all the more visually outstanding? Not quite. The animation feels unimproved. This only elaborates on the fact that Finding Dory was produced to please the masses. The film is humourous, and introduces us to a school of new characters, but there’s something missing, (and by that I don’t just mean Dory…). Originality is one element it lacks, as well as the sentimental force Finding Nemo had.

As with the majority of Disney films, there tends to be a message in the subtext of its animated features. Finding Dory centrals on the subject of disability; Dory’s being memory loss. Almost all of the characters that you will encounter in this film have some form of disability. It is used for both tragic and comedic effect with a commendable level of sophistication. Though it shares a run time with Finding Nemo, this instalment feels a slightly faster pace. The heartwarming scenes therefore felt rushed in opposed to feeling powerful. These scenes should have been less overpowering and “in your face”; subtlety would have been more effective.

Finding Dory complements its predecessor well. However, it doesn’t quite swim the depths of Pixar’s greatest flicks. The dull dialogue enters choppy waters, but the characters are captivating nonetheless, and its message dives straight to the heart. It will make audiences smile, but overall, Pixar cod have done batter.