Time for a little catch-up. Expect it all month-long. You see, things I saw weeks ago, took a back seat to Oscar for the first two months of 2017. If “Finding Dory” had actually scored an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature, you can be certain that I would’ve reviewed it earlier. It didn’t…and you shouldn’t be all that surprised. Billion dollar worldwide box office? Yup. Sequel to Oscar-winning smash “Finding Nemo”? Check. Disney Pixar? ELLEN! Unbeatable ingredients, right? It’s also kinda safe, a little boring, plus it overstays its welcome. Lukewarm, inoffensive, by-the-numbers, family fare. “Zootopia” is flawed, but far better.
Yeah, so there’s not much enthusiasm I can raise for even writing about “Finding Dory”. Dory, a Regal blue tang, tries to overcome short-term memory loss, and find her missing parents. Okay. The colors are vibrant, the script is adequate, some set pieces are mildly exciting. Are you sensing the pattern here? No heavy trashing, but this one swims right down the middle. Great voice talent includes: Ms. DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Ed O’Neill, Kate McKinnon, Eugene Levy. Andrew Stanton also directed the vastly superior, “Finding Nemo”. What you’ll get from this sequel is exactly what you’d expect…and nothing more. Ho-hum.
Grade: C+
Reviewed by Mark Leonard 