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Another Tale from the Sea Film revists popular world By Br yan VanC ampe n Finding Dory, co-written and co-directed by Andrew Stanton & Angus MacLane; playing at Regal Stadium 14.
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(Right) Ellen DeGeneres voices Dory in “FInding Dory” (Photo Provided)
n a recent episode of Leonard Maltin’s terrific podcast “Maltin on Movies,” guest comic Dana
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Gould came out with one of the best theories I’ve heard as to why most
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sequels aren’t as good as the first films. As Gould puts it, every movie is meant to represent the greatest adventure that the lead character could have. In other words, we’re watching the film because the events therein are the most lifechanging imaginable. The problem is that the sequel doesn’t have the right story. So: Is Finding Dory as good as Finding Nemo was 13 years ago? Well, it can’t capture the surprise factor, and a fairly frenetic storyline with lots of crazy chases and reversals has been invented to try and cover up the fact that we’re basically seeing the same story with a different character going through the same changes. Since it turns out that there’s a lot of water around, at least we get to see lots of new underwater habitats and scenery, and meet lots of engaging, funny new players, particularly a chameleon-like squid named Hank voiced by Ed O’Neill and two hilarious sea lions, Fluke and Rudder (Idris Elba and Dominic West). Since Ellen DeGeneres’ Dory turned out to be the breakout character in Finding Nemo, the movie makes the most of her warmth and her ditsy personality. If you recall, Dory suffers from shortterm memory loss, and so the first 10 or 15 minutes take us back to when she was a little fish living with her parents (Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy). And since Pixar is no stranger to leading with sadness, Dory’s separation from her folks is as traumatic and upsetting as you might imagine. (Kudos to the other voice actors playing Dory at younger ages; they’ll break your heart.) So the new adventure is all for Dory, with Marlin (Albert Brooks) and Nemo (Hayden Rolence) tagging along for the adventure. Aside from a few returning critters like the slipstream turtles, Dory meets a lot of new fishes and other creatures. As mentioned, I especially liked Ed O’Neill’s performance as a colorchanging octopus who wants the life of Riley as a zoo animal. He’s such a selfcentered mercenary in the ways that he helps Dory that her natural friendliness melts him just enough to be hilarious. And yes, I loved the sea lions and the otters. (Every time I visit the Monterey Aquarium, I can sit for hours in front of the otter house). If any movie deserves a sequel, it’s this movie, and not, say, Shark Tale. I especially liked the voice casting; like Craig T. Nelson in The Incredibles, an actor like O’Neill is perfect casting, even if he’s not a major movie star. You’ll also meet two whales, Destiny (Kaitlin Olson) and Bailey (Ty Burrell) that lend a fin in Dory’s quest. And yes, that’s Kate McKinnon and Bill Hader as a husband and wife fish pair, and one of the greatest celebrity voice cameos in years, which I will not reveal. That’s the kind of surprise that has really been a hallmark of the best Pixar films. •