PETE’S DRAGON ■ Green with beauty
Disney is currently obsessed with turning every animated thing into a live-action property. While the original 1977 PETE’S DRAGON mixed live-action with an animated dragon in entertaining ways, the 2016 remake opts for a live-action cast supported by a CG dragon. The story starts out in classic Disney fashion, with a pretty heavy tragedy, albeit presented in an accessible way.
After the opening, the bulk of the story is dedicated to wild-child Pete (Oakes Fegley) and his dragon Elliot. The duo have a sweet and fun interaction, but the predictable way that these stories tend to go is exactly how this story plays out. When Elliot is inevitably spotted by other people, certain townsfolk rally to protect, and others embrace fear. There are obvious heroes and obvious villains, but despite being formulaic, PETE’S DRAGON has its fair share of entertaining and poignant moments.
It helps that the CG design of Elliot is particularly on point: most of the time, he looks like a gentle giant, but when he needs to be a scary dragon, he’s sufficiently intimidating. Writer/director doesn’t treat Elliot like a typical monster, and wastes little time showing off the beautifully rendered dragon. Where the movie disappoints, though, is in its ending. By trying to tie a neat bow on everything, PETE’S DRAGON confuses the real idea of home with a cliché ending, and veers for the opposite of what feels like the logical conclusion of the story. Still, there’s enough magic in this latest Disney movie to warrant the price of admission, even if it falls short of the kind of timeless story it could have been.
★★★½ STARS ■ PG ■ 103mins
