From the far reaches of the Milky Way Galaxy, It's Retro Nerd Girl with a film review for you.
Today I'll be reviewing a movie as a special request from my friend Josh and it’s We’re Back released in 1993.
Starring:
Starring the voice talents of John Goodman, Jay Leno, Walter Cronkite, Julia Child, and Martin Short.
Directed by:
Phil Nibbelink, Simon Wells, Dick Zondag and Ralph Zondag
Genre:
Adventure, Comedy
Rating:
G
Budget:
N/A
IMDb Rating is currently:
6.1
My Rating:
8
The Synopsis is:
A wishmaker from the far future, captain New eyes, travels back in time to collect 4 dinosaurs, Rex the tyrannosaurus rex, Dweeb the Parasaurolophus, Woog the Triceratops and Elsa the Pteranodon. He convinces them to the middle future, which is about our present, to fulfill the wishes of children who want to see real dinosaurs.
Enjoyment:
I really enjoyed this film mostly because it seems like a silly kids movie, but there’s actually a deeper significance and message.
Pacing:
1h 12min. It’s nice and short and sweet.
*WARNING: FROM THIS POINT FORWARD THERE MAY BE SPOILERS!*
Story:
We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story was based on the 1987 Hudson Talbott children's book of the same name, which was narrated from the perspective of the main character, a Tyrannosaurus rex named Rex.
This film is timely for 1993 as there was a upsurgence of dinosaur interest by the public and in particular children were the primary source of curiosity.
But that curiosity has been going for many years before, from old dinosaur stop motion films and Flintstones helped to inspire grown up children, 90’s filmmakers create content about these mysterious creatures.
The film is unique in the way of actually being about serving this curiosity about dinosaurs at the time as there were several live action and animated films released around the same time.
The story is filled with tons of plot holes and weird occurrences that leave you bewildered. But all in all I liked it and it was the heartwarming and thoughtful theme that really holds this film together and makes it memorable.
There is a rather cute call back to 2001 A Space Odyssey released in 1968 when Neweyes says you may open the pod bay doors.
As the dinosaurs dance around Times Square, it is possible to see a theatre marquee advertising Jurassic Park (1993), which was directed by this film’s executive producer Steven Spielberg.
At the very beginning of the parade scene, a marching band is seen holding a banner that says "Arcadia High School Marching Band". Steven Spielberg attended Arcadia High School in Scottsdale, Arizona.
Challenge:
At first, the challenge is the adventure of the dinosaurs getting to Dr. Juliet Bleeb at the museum of natural history in order for them to finally meet the children and fulfil their wishes.
But then the challenge is clearly stated by Captain Neweyes that his brother Professor Screweyes is “cruel and insane, causing mischief, driven mad because of the loss of his eye.” But is he really a terrible person?
Besides that, there is a subplot about two brothers on opposite spectrums of service to mankind. One, ready to answer the wishes of children, he learns from his wish radio. The other, ready to feed the fears that entertain, he learns from his fright radio.
Professor Screweyes the ringmaster of the eccentric circus temporarily in central park. He is desire to answer the fears of the population is from his own desire to master of fear itself… especially his own.
He fears the crows, so he keeps them close so he can watch them and he pleases the circus crowd so he would not remain alone.
Professor Neweyes, is pretty harmless, until he crosses the line into being a villain when he makes people do things against their will and blackmail the dinosaurs into being a part of his circus to serve the fright radio. Completely opposite of Captain Neweyes who after giving the dinosaurs brain grain, insists on letting them make the decision of answering the wishes of children with their free will.
The other challenge in the story is in the form of a commentary about the lack of intelligence or ignorance, which makes the dinosaurs violent and unable to recognize love.
Professor Screweyes uses his invention, the opposite of Captain Neweye’s brain grain cereal, his own drain brain pills to devolve the dinosaurs of their intelligence which sends them back into being terrifying and unreasonable monsters.
This is actually an insightful commentary about human beings and how love and intelligence is comparable. We can show our intelligence by not being violent and more understanding of our world.
Empathy:
The story begins with a birdy running away from home to join the circus and a talking dinosaur by the name of Rex telling the tale of how running off to the circus may be a bad idea.
Rex and the other dinosaurs that have eaten the intelligent enhancing cereal become remorseful and more compassionate adopting humanistic personalities.
However, the filmmakers make a bold statement about how the world of this film is going to operate, by making it clear that this is a fantasy and not a history lesson about dinosaurs.
It’s prevalent when we see plant eating dinosaurs eat hot dogs. It is a definite method of anthropomorphizing these creatures… even americanizing them therefore removing their essential animal instincts to conform human standards of social normalcy at the time.
Rex along with fellow dinosaurs, Dweeb, Woog and Elsa is convinced to help answer the wishes of children who want to see real dinosaurs in middle future.
What really tips the scales in favor of this is when Rex sees that a boy by the name of Louie is alone and wishes for a friend.
We think that the dinosaurs are the main characters of the story but they aren’t. Louie is really the main character here and the hero of the film. He is a natural born leader with the most ideas, the most to do and say in the film.
Louie like the birdy who wants to leave the nest, is over adored by their mothers and wants to join the circus. And if it weren't for this subplot, the dinosaurs would have never met Professor screweyes.
Louie convinces a rich lonely girl by the name of cecilia to run away to the circus with him and introduce her to the dinosaurs.
Interestingly enough, cecilia is lonely for completely opposite reasons than louie. She is forgotten by her busy parents and yearns for their interaction as she waits for them in her spacious but empty home.
The dinosaurs agree to help them to get to the circus at central park before going to the museum of natural history because Louie saves Rex’s life.
Louie discovers a clever way to get the dinosaurs to travel while not freaking everyone out, by pretending to be dinosaur robots in the Thanksgiving Parade. I thought that was really ingenious.
This gives way to an amazing realisation by rex that the children don’t just want to see dinosaurs, they want to interact with real dinosaurs further instilling the sense of purpose they feel.
When the children and the dinosaurs separate, there is a strong sense of friendship between Louie and Rex and it is because of this friendship that ultimately saves the day.
In the midst of this are budding romantic relationships as it is the females in the story that let the men know that they are interested in more than a friendship with Cecila making advances towards Louie and Elsa making advances toward Rex.
It’s a different approach to romance than we are used to with the men making the advances first. I have even heard commenters say that the women in the film are indignant for their forward approach, but the filmmakers were experimenting with the idea that there should be no difference who approaches first… and I really admire that idea.
Stubs, the circus’ clown, is a great supporting character with the sad position of being unappreciated for his comedic talents and you can tell that it means so much to him to see people laugh as if he too is ruled by a service to others.
He undergoes a great arc, by finally realising that he doesn’t have to stay where he’s not appreciated. He has a wonderful explosion of courage when he finally quits his job in one of the most memorable scene in the film.
Technical:
This film was produced by Steven Spielberg's Amblimation animation studio, distributed by Universal Pictures.
Production and development for this film began in 1989, and in 1990 the film's voice actors finished recording their parts.
The animation took the longest as it was finally finished in the fall of 1993.
Actor John Malkovich was originally set to voice the role of Professor Screweyes and recorded much of the scenes. However he left the project due to creative differences. You can still get a glimpse of his performance in a key deleted scene floating around the internet, wherein Professor Screweyes deliciously explains how he lost his eye.
To promote the movie's release, a giant helium balloon of Rex was included in the 1993 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York. Unfortunately, the first half of the balloon pops, but the rest of the dinosaur's body remained inflated.
Many people have pointed out that in the film, Rex accidentally pops a dinosaur balloon in the Parade sequence.
The score was really great and went from touching, awe inspiring and comedically plucky.
And the catchy song, Roll back the rock sung by John Goodman as Rex was really great and extremely memorable.
Let’s talk about the animation for a moment. The animation style and even some of the accompanying music felt a lot like the popular TV show the animaniacs which debuted in the same year 1993.
While people who read the book expected the the characters to resemble the books illustrations, or have a more realistic appearance, the animated characters do have a special charm to them.
What was the most enthralling to me were the backgrounds and staging of visuals in this film. The, landscapes and cityscapes were absolutely gorgeous, the details astounding and breathtaking. It really conveys a magnificent attention to getting the feel and look of New York City just right. I just loved it.
And I really loved the design and movement of Dr Neweyes’ ship. It was just very beautifully done.
Performances:
Walter Cronkite as Captain Neweyes was a brilliant choice and although he’s not an actor, you can hardly tell. When Captain Neweyes closes the museum door near the end of the movie, he says "And that's the way it is!", a reference to Cronkite's famous closing line on the CBS evening news. Joey Shea as Louie
Tv cooking legend Julia Child voiced Dr. Juliet Bleeb, adding a special charm to the characters’ loveable voice.
John Goodman’s voice is very heartwarming as Rex.
Jay Leno was perfectly zanny as Vorb. He has a small part, but he’s memorable.
Kenneth Mars as Professor Screweyes the ringmaster of the eccentric circus and the main antagonist of the film. Really excellent.
Yeardley Smith as Cecilia Nuthatch. A familiar voice. The iconic voice of Lisa Simpson, from the simpsons.
Martin Short as Stubbs, The Clown. brilliant!
Best:
My favorite scene is actually the creepiest scene in the film when the crows get their revenge on professor screweyes. It was a beautiful, artsy scene with an eerie and lasting impression. It’s really dark and I had no idea the story was going to go in that direction. What a nice surprise, bringing great depth to the film in just a few moments.
Wish List:
I wish the story was truly about learning about dinosaurs. It would have been a nice touch to it, that would make it easy for grown ups accept.
And I do think that Professor Screweyes’ monologue about what happened to his missing eye should have been kept in the film.
The Ending:
The ending was pretty great for me. It’s a happy ending, but one that seems as if I wouldn’t mind if there were more stories to tell of the dinosaurs, a TV series, or even a prequel of what happened to the brothers.
Summary:
This film is a classic for many people who were kids in the 1990’s, but it seems most kids are thrilled by this film. I don’t know if it is because of the unique animation style, I myself had to get used to, if it is the popular song Roll back the rock, or the tale itself. It seems to perform some kind of magic when placed in front of children.
The cool thing about this film is that it hits a personal note for me being that it is set in New York. New York City, Thanksgiving day Parade, Central Park, The Museum of Natural History. I used to go as a child on class trips, with my mom, and sometimes alone and just loving all of the history.
The film is a mix of slapstick humor and bits, with some really touching moments, like when a little girl makes a wish to get a Thanksgiving Hat, and later in the story, cecilia throws away her holiday hat and the girl gets her wish as it falls into her hands.
I also enjoy the idea of being able to transform others, by touching them emotionally. And the film uses physical touch to demonstrate that, when Rex touch the children and it turns them from apes to humans again and when the children touch the wild animalistic dinosaurs and it transforms them back into the loving intelligent beings they once were.
To my friend Josh, Thanks for suggesting that I watch this film. It’s a fun, unique movie and I liked it.
That sums up my review. I hope you liked it. This is Retro Nerd Girl signing off.
Take care movie lovers! I'm off to the next review!
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