Dumbo (Live-Action)

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Mooky
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Mooky »

Of course, I'm not denying that. I'm just saying that if something is being advertised as a live-action film, it should employ more live-action sensibilities and not try to hook you in with fake-looking big, blue, sad baby elephant eyes. At times it was like looking at Puss in Boots in Shrek 2 (you know the scene). Animation can get away with overexpressiveness because that's just the medium's modus operandi, but in "live-action" it feels weird when compared to the rest of the movie. Dumbo comes off as a cartoon more than a photorealistic animal (which is what I assume they were aiming for) especially when placed next to the older, more realistic-looking elephants.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Disney Duster »

The song in the trailer was by Aurora and was not by Miss Atlantis. I think the Aurora version was way better.
Last edited by Disney Duster on Mon Apr 01, 2019 10:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

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Thanks, Duster :) I too thought the trailer version was much better.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Disney Duster »

Oh, I checked, and actually the band that did the cover in the credits is Arcade Fire, not Miss Atlantis.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by unprincess »

I really dont know if I should see this in theaters or not. I was going to, but those reviews...wow. I feel bad for Dumbo, the movie, the character really doesn't deserve this.

Just out of curiosity, how does it handle Farrell's character's coming back from the war? any WW1 flashbacks?
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by JeanGreyForever »

Same here. All the terrible reviews kept me from watching it this weekend, but I've always loved the character of Dumbo so I feel really bad for all this negative treatment.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by kbehm29 »

I never let the opinion of someone else influence whether I see a movie or not! I just saw this tonight, and honestly, I have no clue why people didn’t like it or were disappointed by it. I am not a fan of the original Dumbo movie. This one was good. Please go see it and judge for yourself.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

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Unprincess, there are no World War II flashbacks. He never talks about the war that I remember. They only ever talk about his old job and the mother.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Marce82 »

I saw Dumbo today. I dont know what the reviews are talkin about... (No spoilers ahead!)

Let me first say I am not a fan of Disney live action remakes. I think most of them are pointless and inferior to the originals. I had more faith in Dumbo, cause they had no choice but to make a lot of changes, which meant this movie would be its own thing and not just a bad carbon copy of the original. And I have faith in Tim Burton :-)

And for the first half, I was right. Brilliantly adapted, emotionally resonant, plenty of (classy, subtle) homages to the original. Around half way through, there is a major shift in the story... slightly less good after that , and the focus is a bit lost. And then the final 20 mins are just... they dont really belong in this movie, in my opinion. Not the right tone, leading to an emotionally bland ending, albeit absurdly politically correct.

The ending was the biggest let down... when I watch the original, I ALWAYS end up w tears in my eyes. So much joy. This one... meh.

And sad, considering the VERY strong first half!

And yet, with all its flaws, I think it is possibly the best of the Disney Live Action remakes... def worth checkin out!!!
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Warm Regards »

I saw this movie the other day. I think Dumbo the elephant is cute... For a CGI creature. But this movie left me hollow.

Just some thoughts. Maybe minor spoilers so I'll do my best to cover.

- I don't get why we needed the father character in this movie. He was so monotone and boring and didn't have a personal connection to Dumbo. The kids miss their mom so they relate, the ring master comes to see through Dumbo that animals have feelings too, but there's no arc with the father. Why couldn't the Danny Devito character be the zany father to contrast his down to earth (well, boring) kids? I feel that'd be more interesting than the whole family being sour pusses.

- The daughter is D-U-L-L. She misses her mom like Dumbo misses his but it's barely believable. She doesn't cry, she doesn't have emotional outbursts. She is into science which I thought maybe came from wanting to cure the mom's disease/general doctor matters, but they never make such a connection. Her brother is similarly bland but I felt like his personality was more tolerable? Also, if you see the trailer, the daughter carries around a key necklace. We learn in the movie the history of this necklace, but then at the end she just throws it into the fire saying she doesn't need it because Dumbo doesn't need a feather to fly! I couldn't believe that. Apparently this girl doesn't care much for her mom if she throws away an heirloom like that. And Dumbo's mom doesn't have feathers so for him the feather was more of a catalyst/good luck charm than an important family memento. The two (feather and key) are not the same at all, so why did she do that?

- The villain is an idiot who essentially sabatoged himself. There's a really funny "evil" scene in the climax that reminds of something you may have seen in Roger Rabbit, it's so cartoony and over the top but he just can't help himself.

I like some shots of the acrobatic French girl (sorry, forget her name), she had pretty outfits. The ending of the movie is satisfying if we see Dumbo as a part of the human character's story, as it shows how they learned to better themselves and treat animals better. But if we are to see Dumbo as the main character (he is the name of the movie), the ending feels forced and unwarranted, it just exists to be PC.

Also, the circus at the end decides to no longer keep live animals in cages but still keeps their horses... Mixed messages?
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by netenyahoo »

Marce82 wrote:I saw Dumbo today. I dont know what the reviews are talkin about... (No spoilers ahead!)

Let me first say I am not a fan of Disney live action remakes. I think most of them are pointless and inferior to the originals. I had more faith in Dumbo, cause they had no choice but to make a lot of changes, which meant this movie would be its own thing and not just a bad carbon copy of the original. And I have faith in Tim Burton :-)

And for the first half, I was right. Brilliantly adapted, emotionally resonant, plenty of (classy, subtle) homages to the original. Around half way through, there is a major shift in the story... slightly less good after that , and the focus is a bit lost. And then the final 20 mins are just... they dont really belong in this movie, in my opinion. Not the right tone, leading to an emotionally bland ending, albeit absurdly politically correct.

The ending was the biggest let down... when I watch the original, I ALWAYS end up w tears in my eyes. So much joy. This one... meh.

And sad, considering the VERY strong first half!

And yet, with all its flaws, I think it is possibly the best of the Disney Live Action remakes... def worth checkin out!!!
Your review is spot on with my views of the film. I liked the first part of the movie, but the second half and especially the ending lost me. Maybe I need to see it again, but I did not like the ending.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by unprincess »

thanks Disney Duster. I still dont know if I'll watch it in theaters and I better make up my mind soon b/c it probably wont be in cinemas for long. My original plan was to watch this in theaters and skip Toy Story 4(which looks cute but is mostly yet another TS sequel, I can just do a straight buy on dvd and watch it then.) But now I wonder if I should just skip Dumbo and watch TS4 instead. I saw the first 3 in theaters, maybe I might as well not break that tradition? :P
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Marce82 »

hi netenyahoo !

Glad you see eye to eye w me. I re read the review on here by Luke Bonanno... he seems to feel exactly the opposite: that the latter half is better.
I felt like the latter half was barely about Dumbo! Oh well, to each their own...
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Disney Duster »

Your welcome unprincess. If you want more advice, even though I thought Dumbo was good, I would see Toy Story 4 in theaters because it's probably better. I just know that I cried during Dumbo and seeing his flights and the circus stuff on the big screen is a plus.

Mooky, you know, I didn't want to see this because I thought the story would be more about the humans than Dumbo, but I actually felt the movie always kept Dumbo as the main focus you were supposed to care about, and I did care about him.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Tristy »

So, I just got back from seeing it. My opinion of it is kind of difficult to pinpoint. i do kind of agree with the criticisms that the new characters are one note and don't go through a whole lot of development. Some plot points felt a little rushed and I was disappointed with Michael Keaton's performance. He played it a bit too cartoonish and half the time I couldn't understand what he was saying. And some of his actions almost felt like he was reading off a checklist of villain cliches and going through the motions.

With all that said, however, it is perhaps Burton's most entertaining film in quite a while. I doesn't feel as bogged down as Miss Peregrine or Alice did and it didn't have anything in it that made me angry the way certain scenes of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory did. Burton seems to feel more comfortable with this. It probably helps that it isn't as CG heavy. DeVito is clearly having a blast and Farrell and Green are likable enough even if they aren't going to be remembered any time soon. The CG Dumbo was easily the star of the whole thing. I know some might be a little turned off by his mixture of realism and cartoony looks but the animators were able to inject some personality into him.

So yeah. That's my two cents on it. It's probably not something I'll go see again and again. But even with some weak material, it does feel like Burton's slowly re-emerging. All in all I enjoyed it.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by rodis »

I watched it on Saturday. Loved (almost) everything about it. The Burton style with the dark colors fit the story and contrasted the circus idea very well.
De Vito's character was a standout. I don't get why the little girl gets so much criticism, I thought she was alright.
Definitely will buy it on Blu ray.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by Disney Duster »

I think the little girl was saying her lines monotone to show she is more scientific than emotional. She still could have been scientific and emotional like a good actress, but I think the scientific thing making you less emotional was what they were going for.
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Re: Dumbo (Live-Action)

Post by D82 »

Dumbo will be released on Blu-ray and digital on June 25. These are the bonus features:
BLU-RAY & DIGITAL HD:

• CIRCUS SPECTACULARS: Dumbo's cast share their experience of making the film-and get to the heart of a story about family and believing in yourself.
• THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM: Explore how one of Disney's most lovable characters went from an animated classic to a stunning live-action retelling.
• BUILT TO AMAZE: Get a closer look at the film's production and costume design.
• DELETED SCENES: A compelling collection of scenes that almost made the final film.
  • • Roustabout Rufus
    • Pachyderm Plans
    • The Other Medici Brother
    • Monkey Business
    • A Star Is Born
    • Where's Dumbo
    • Elephant Heist
    • A Seat at the Show
• EASTER EGGS ON PARADE: Discover the hidden and not-so-hidden nods to the animated Dumbo in this narrated tribute to the Disney classic.
• CLOWNING AROUND: Laugh along with the cast in a collection of big-top bloopers and goofs from the set.
• "BABY MINE": Visual video performed by Arcade Fire

DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE:

• DREAMLAND - ANATOMY OF A SCENE: From Final Script to Final Scene: The filmmakers and cast talk a lot about the feeling of "grand intimacy" in the film. Step right up as they bring the Dreamland parade to life, accomplishing the rare marriage of a massive spectacle combined with an emotional tenderness.
Source: https://movieweb.com/dumbo-4k-blu-ray-r ... -features/
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