Dive beneath the ocean with the geniuses
from Pixar. “Finding Nemo” is a great movie because it has the best the studio
has to offer: state-of-the-art animation, engaging characters, funny gags,
strong dialogue, and a solid story. Directed by Andrew Stanton, the movie was
one of the hits of 2003 and was the fifth success for Pixar after “Toy Story”
in 1995. Children love this movie for the story and adults can enjoy it for the
smart humour.
I first saw “Finding Nemo” in theatres with
my brother in 2003. It was a busy summer: my parents and I had just moved back to
Quebec City after an 8 year stay in South America. When we were not busy
unpacking and painting the walls of our new home, I would ask for a break to go
to the movies. The movie was dubbed in French, which I hate, but it’s different
with animated movies. The stories told are usually universal, and the jokes can
be translated in any language. Seeing a great white shark called Bruce say
“Fish are friend, not food” is probably just as funny in Swahili as it is in
the original script.
Set in the Australian Great Barrier Reef,
the story focuses on the relationship between a father and his only son. Years
ago clownfish Marlin (Albert Brooks) and his wife Coral (Elizabeth Perkins) had
hundreds of eggs ready to hatch. In a tragedy worthy of “Bambi,” a barracuda
eats Cora and all the eggs save one. Marlin vows to protect his surviving child
at all times, turning him into the most overprotective dad in the entire ocean.
When his son Nemo (Elliot Gould) is ready for his first day of school Marlin’s
constant pestering about safety embarrasses him in front of his new friends.
In an act of defiance Nemo swims towards a
fishing boat to touch it with his fin. For fishes, this must be the equivalent
of knocking on the door of the haunted house in the neighbourhood.
Unfortunately, the boat’s owner, who is wearing a menacing scuba diving gear,
snatches Nemo. Marlin gives chase, but he cannot swim faster than the boat. In
his haste he runs into Dory (Ellen DeGeneres) a friendly Pacific Regal Blue
Tang who has seen where the boat is going. That is if she can remember where it
went. Dory suffers from short-term memory loss, making her somewhat unreliable
when it comes to direction. During their quest, the tow of them will run into
vegetarian sharks, jellyfish, surfer dude turtles, and in a scene reminiscent
of “Pinocchio,” a whale will swallow them whole.
Meanwhile, we learn what happened to Nemo
after he was captured. He is now in an aquarium in a dental office with a view
of Sydney harbour. The aquarium is the home of a variety of other fish who wish
to escape this confined space. Their leader is Gill (Willem Dafoe) whose voice
gives him a certain wisdom and world-weariness. Gill has apparently been a
prisoner for a long time, which has allowed him time to plan an escape worthy
of “Mission: Impossible.”
While these two plot lines are heading
towards an inevitable collision, the writers keep the laughs coming. Who
wouldn’t laugh at a meeting of “sharks anonymous” where three sharks who have
sworn off eating their fellow fish recite their pledge? It even gets a little
dirty for a children’s movie at one point. When the fish in the dental office
manage to block the aquarium’s filter as part of their escape plan, it quickly
fills up with grime. One of them screams, “Don’t you realize we are swimming in
our own shi…?”, only to be interrupted by a loud burp.
The animation is top-notch throughout.
Water, I have heard, is one of the most difficult elements to animate. Yet the
hard-working crew at Pixar created an ocean that is both colourful and
convincing. As night falls on Sydney harbour, the sun’s reflection on the ocean
is simply gorgeous. When fishes jump out of the water, we can still water on
the surface of their skin. A lot of effort went into this movie.
“Finding Nemo” won the Oscar for Best Animated
movie, but it is not just a great-animated movie. At the heart of it all it is
the story of a dad who needs to let go of his son if wants him to actually grow
up. Yes, life is full of dangers, but you cannot live in fear when there is
such a big world (and ocean) out there.
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