MPAA Rating: PG/Genre: Computer Animated Comedy Drama Adventure/Voices of: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Hayden Rolence, Ed O’Neill, Kaitlin Olson, Ty Burrell, Diane Keaton, Eugene Levy, Idris Elba, Dominic West, Bob Peterson, Andrew Stanton, Sigourney Weaver, Bill Hader, Kate McKinnon, Alexander Gould, Torbin Xan Bullock, Katherine Ringgold, Bennett Dammann, John Ratzenberger, Angus MacLane, Willem Dafoe, Brad Garrett, Allison Janney, Austin Pendleton, Stephen Root, Vicki Lewis, Jerome Ranft/Runtime: 97 minutes

Well ladies and gentlemen, it might have taken them a good long while to fully pull it off, but I think I have now acquired enough evidence to pull back the curtain and reveal a potentially Earth-shattering truth. That being that iconic animation powerhouse Pixar is guilty of seriously lying to our kids. Now before you pick up your torches and pitchforks please give me a minute to explain how they are doing this. With that in mind, the reason I say this is because thanks to an extent by the slice of cinema I am reviewing for you today, 2016’s Finding Dory, there are kids out there who actually now believe that a sequel can be not only a good thing, but also something that people should by no means argue against. I mean yes it’s bad enough that these innocent individuals are too young to remember some of the examples that a lot of us older kids (or adults if you prefer) have in our minds that can serve as exemptions to that rule (Speed 2 or Son of the Mask anyone?). However because of Pixar, the future masters of the universe will now grow up in a world that, because of this slice of cinema, has encouraged them to believe that a sequel is never something that could ultimately be unnecessary at best and shameless ways to make the people involved in the making of it some extra change for the parking meter at worst. Instead, they all in their own ways are, again like this one, more than able to retrospectively contributing new layers to movies that were nothing short of iconic to begin with. This is especially worrisome for a movie like this because when Finding Nemo just kept swimming at the box office back in 2003, this slice of cinema was part of a significant line of gems that helped to distinguish Pixar as a creative powerhouse to be reckoned with. 13 years later though and we see that someone (alright to good yet not great sequels) really polluted that particular pond and as a result this studio really didn’t have the glowing reputation it did in years past. With that in mind, you should know that Finding Dory isn’t fully able to calm the stormy weather brought on by those less than stellar entries in the studio’s filmography. It is also is by no means enough to take away just how frustrating a sequel from Pixar can feel since we as movie goers really do feel like they are still a studio that can, when they feel like it, make a world unlike any other. Thankfully, Finding Dory is not a movie that seems dead set on repeating the first movie nor just being a lethargic attempt to wring money out of a premise that was best as a one and done. Rather, it may have a few issues, but by and large with the aid of wonderful work on both sides of the camera, this is one sequel that does manage to present quite a riveting argument for what a sequel should be in the first place whilst also being a fairly enjoyable effort in its own right.

The plot is as follows: Taking place a solid year after the events of Finding Nemo, our slice of cinema’s riveting narrative gets underway by seeing that our favorite forgetful fish Dory, her still more than slightly overprotective clownfish friend Marlin, and Marlin’s son Nemo are all residing together in relative peace and harmony in the reef off the coast of Australia. Well I guess it would be better, and more honest, to say that at least Nemo and Marlin are. The reason I bring this up is because even though Dory does appreciate the surrogate family she has found in the pair, there is still something essential that has tragically been missing from her life for a long time. That being her loving parents Charlie and Jenny who, despite their best attempts to raise a young Dory and keep her close due to her significant memory loss issue, found themselves being separated from her which resulted in Dory, in the ensuing chaos, tragically forgetting how to make her way back home. We soon see things begin to change though when, whilst helping Nemo’s teacher Mr. Ray with a class field trip, our intrepid heroine starts to inexplicably remember little details about where her parents might be including something about the “Jewel of Morro Bay” in a place called “California”. Excited about actually remembering something rather than forgetting for once to say nothing of seeing this as a potential opportunity to finally reunite with her parents, we see Dory, with Marlin and Nemo along for the ride, set out on another grand adventure. One that will see her land smack dab in the middle of a place called the Marine Life Institute where she will soon reunite with old friends in the form of a whale shark named Destiny, make new friends such as a wonderfully grumpy ol’ seven-legged octopus named Hank and a concussion-stricken beluga whale named Bailey, but hopefully will see something else occur as well. That being no more and no less than a reunion with her long-lost family. As for if that is something she is able to accomplish to say nothing of what surprises await her that is something I will leave for you to discover dear reader……..

Now right off the ol’ fin, it should be noted that the work done behind the camera is really well done. To be sure, if you make the choice to view this slice of cinema and its predecessor back-to-back in a double feature you will find there are most assuredly things that the two have in common in regards to both narrative as well as framework that it is operating with. As a result, this film is not exactly able to fully maneuver around the sequel pratfall that a lot of follow-ups fall prey to. Making up that though is the fact that the attempts made by this film to balance those things which are familiar with things that are new are fairly well-done. Perhaps the most significant example of this is the fact that the new main setting of the film in the form of the Marine Life Institute really is a terrific setting for this film to operate in since it gives Dory a lot of delightfully absurd circumstances to become embroiled in be it working with Hank to bust out of the quarantine area or dealing with the horrors found in the infamous Touch Tank that is a part of most aquariums (and which young people watching this might hesitate to engage with the next time they visit an aquarium after seeing this movie). Yes, things do start going awry as we make our way to the third act, but nevertheless this movie manages to stay riveting and appropriately emotional in equal measure. To be sure, things getting emotional is pretty much par for the course at some point during pretty much every single Pixar movie that has been made up to this point and thankfully this slice of cinema is not an outlier by any stretch. By that I mean here is a film that yes deals with being on your own in a world that is larger and scarier than you could ever imagine, but by the same token also makes you aware that there are people (or other aquatic creatures) in that world that both care about you and can also give you a sense of belonging as well. Along with that though, we also see that, as we have time and time again, Pixar’s skill with telling us an emotionally riveting narrative is brilliantly equaled by their phenomenal skill in terms of animation. No, this movie isn’t top-tier Pixar by any stretch, but it is still an incredibly gorgeous movie all the same. To be sure, there is an inevitable decline to be found by transferring the story from the vast and seemingly infinite ocean to more closed-in and human-friendly environment, but it also does a wonderful job of providing this film with a wonderful chance to engage in terrific visual contrast work. Along with that, we see that the creative team manage to do a phenomenal job again when it comes to the look of the various characters with the key example of this being the character of Hank who is just downright incredible in how he looks and even acts very much like a real octopus would. Suffice it to say that yes there are bits and pieces of this slice of cinema that do seem to suffer a wee bit from that dreaded movie illness known as sequelitis, but for the most part this slice of cinema from a behind the camera perspective is incredibly well-done.

Of course, the other element that goes a long way toward helping this slice of cinema stay above water (pun intended) would have to be the work done by the movie’s cast of players in utilizing their respective vocal talents to bring the incredible collection of characters in this film vividly to life. This starts with returning star Ellen DeGeneres who, in her reprisal of the iconic Dory, is nothing short of delightful. Yes there is a stretch of the movie where you might find yourself concerned about making this stand-out supporting character from the first film into arguably the main character here, but DeGeneres does such a wonderful job at brilliantly bringing back the happy-go-lucky attitude, the giddy optimism, the winningly goofy sense of humor, and the positivity even in the face of her distinct issue that helped Dory become so beloved the first time around that she is able to make to the transition from supporting player to lead character fairly well. We also get another terrific reprisal here from Albert Brooks in the role of Marlin. Yes, he might not get nearly as much to do in this one, but Brooks still does a terrific job at playing both the overprotective yet well-meaning father to Nemo as well as Dory’s concerned and seemingly always on the verge of an anxiety attack at her and/or her antics friend respectively. Besides the return of this dynamic duo, we see that this slice of cinema also manages to contain a wonderful collection of support performances from several new aquatic creatures who’ve decided to swim on in and be a part of this particular oceanic cinematic sandbox. This starts with the perfectly cast, and eternally delightful, Ed O’Neill in the role of Hank. Indeed not only does O’Neill do a wonderful job at playing the comedically grumpy aspects of the character (think more Jay Pritchett from Modern Family than Al Bundy from Married with Children), but he also does a great job at slowly but surely revealing that there’s more to Hank than meets the eye especially in terms of warmth and personality. Suffice it to say that it is a fantastic performance from an actor who it seems was the best choice for the role. Along with O’Neill, we also get another Modern Family actor on loan here in the form of Ty Burell as the concussion-stricken whale Bailey. Indeed, much like with O’Neill, this is another brilliant example of actor and character coming together in a way that just seems organic due to how alike they both are. More than even these two wonderful talents however, I think it can be said that the two most emotional and heartwarming performances in this belong to screen icons Eugene Levy and Diane Keaton as Dory’s parents Charlie and Jenny respectively. Indeed I can’t say a whole lot about their roles in this for fear of spoilers, but what I can say is that the work done by these two immensely talented actors is no less than brilliant. Not only in showing us the love Dory grew up with, but also in tragically showcasing the void that exists in her life via their absence as well. Suffice it to say that when you also factor in wonderful efforts here from such screen talent as Kaitlin Olson (who does a winning job as Dory’s whale shark friend Destiny), Bill Hader, Kate McKinnon, Idris Elba, Dominic West, and a surprise star whose vocal performance in this was definitely a highlight that I would rather not spoil here it is clear to me that there may be issues with this particular film, but the work done by this immensely talented cast most assuredly is not one of them by any stretch of the sea.

All in all is Finding Dory a perfect slice of cinema by any stretch of the imagination? Honestly no, but at the same time very few sequels manage to attain the level of excellence set by its predecessor and even fewer are actually able to top their predecessor. With that in mind though, is this one film that is just (pardon the pun) dead in the water? Honestly I would not say that either. If anything, I would say that, in terms of Pixar sequels, this one is more in the vein of Monsters University than the infamous Cars 2 in that no this slice of cinema isn’t quite able to match up with the work done by its predecessor (though not for lack of effort by any stretch), but it does still manage to do a great job at giving us an opportunity to go on a new adventure with some familiar characters we as movie goers have come to know and love. Suffice it to say that when you also factor in some wonderful vocal work from the immensely talented cast of both returning performers as well as new kids on the block so to speak to say nothing of jaw-dropping work behind the camera especially from the animation department in bringing the world of the film as vividly to life as they are able to pull off here, it’s clear to me that Finding Dory might not be perfect, but it does operate as a fun and emotional summer movie that, unlike it’s titular heroine, I promise you and the little fish in your life won’t have any trouble remembering long after the credits have begun to roll out with the tide. Make of that what thou will and just keep swimming dear reader! On a scale of 1-5 I give Finding Dory “2016” a solid 4 out of 5.