Oh
ah Pete's dragon this is a movie I so
desperately want to like because there
is obviously so much effort put into it
and there are some great songs and there
are some great effects but oh it's just
so corny to me it's kind of like a more
restrained Babes in Toyland there's some
really cool stuff but yeah it's just all
over the place and so cheesy but isn't
that kind what you expect from Disney I
alright let's look at the story a boy
named Pete is running away from home
because he lives with a terrible family
of rednecks so he comes across a town
called Passamaquoddy and tries to see if
he can fit in and find a new family the
trouble Pete has a pet dragon that can
turn invisible whenever he wants of
course being Disney the dragon is
animated but that still doesn't stop for
some scene still building a live-action
version like when he's covered in a net
that's actually pretty impressive he
does come across a kind woman and her
father who are looking to take him in
but his pet dragon keeps getting him
into more and more trouble and the more
he has to keep invisible the more the
mother is afraid that well the dragon
doesn't exist but one person who does
think he exists is our villain and his
fumbling sidekick
they want to capture the dragon and chop
them up into a million pieces because
apparently every part of a dragon can be
used as some sort of tonic there's even
a song about it
dragon cartilage keeps you thin dragon
fat is for berries a dragon tear will
clear up your skin the number one
problem is that unlike films like Ben
Dobbs and broomsticks or Mary Poppins
where they never quite wink too much to
the camera or never fully let in how
cheesy it all is this kind of does it's
hard to say everyone just seems a bit
too over-the-top even the kid that's
supposed to be sort of the normal nice
kid is a little too over-the-top normal
nice there's nothing much to it the only
characters that really seem to find that
right balance even though they are still
over the top is the mother who seems to
have a fun but tough attitude about her
a villain who of course is such a cliche
with the top hat and the big mustache
but oh it just looks like he's having so
much fun it's hard not to kind of laugh
with him I guess you could argue sort of
the over-the-top take on it as part of
the charm but I don't know for me it's
just a little too silly which is not to
say there is a lot of stuff to admire
like I said the animation of the actual
dragon is really good it does lead to a
lot of really good effects when they
have to make them invisible
the songs are a lot of fun again most of
them coming from the villain and like I
said I do enjoy the villa himself and
the mother character but I think the
story is just a little too all over the
place again kind of like babes in
toyland and the main character is so
doll and you just don't care what
happens to them and even the songs as
good as they are don't keep that much
focus I mean there's a scene where the
father sees the dragon and he goes in a
start singing about it and it just goes
on forever it leads into this gigantic
musical number just about how nobody
believes them and it's just like yeah
it's cool but why are we singing this
about whether or not they saw a dragon
it's like where did this come from why
should we be invested in it in fact are
you even singing about the dragon
anymore it's in your face and not the
least bit subtle and I guess I would
understand if that did find an audience
and it did the movie did well and I
still know there's people that watch it
even today I'd be lying if I said I
didn't watch it a few times for the
elements I listed before but anything
else I watch it for is more just for
kind of mockery of it I mean that
redneck family is so silly and these
song sequences are so goofy and
everything is just so played up and not
subtle that I don't know I guess there's
sort of something fun about that but I
don't think it makes for technically a
well-put-together film rather a giant
mess that has some good elements to it
as a whole I think it's just too
overblown taken for what's worth and see
for yourself