Dumbo

photo courtesy of slashfilm.com

SPOILER-FREE REVIEW

     Tim Burton directed Dumbo, the latest in the line of Disney classic live-action remakes (and the first of four to be released in 2019, along with Aladdin, The Lion King, and Maleficent: Mistress of Evil). The movie is loosely based on the 1941 original, but it includes a new cast of supporting characters played by Colin Farrell, Danny DeVito, Michael Keaton, and Eva Green.

     In this retelling, Dumbo is born into a traveling circus and separated from his mother. Two kids from the circus, Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) discover Dumbo’s secret talent: the ability to flap his ears and fly. When a big-time amusement park owner (Michael Keaton) offers to buy Dumbo, the elephant and his trainers become hot commodities… but Dumbo misses his mother. It’s up to the kids, with help from their father Holt (Farrell) and a friendly trapeze artist (Green), to set Dumbo free.

photo courtesy of ew.com

     So how does Dumbo stack up against the other Disney remakes? In short, Dumbo might fall short of being truly wondrous, but it is goshdarn delightful. With an old-fashioned sensibility, a dash of untarnished, childlike imagination, and a ridiculously adorable CGI elephant, it flourishes in a way that few children’s features today know how.

     Now that being said, I’m not sure Dumbo will be everyone’s cup of tea. The story moves slower than we’re used to, with understated plot points stretched over the movie’s runtime. And Dumbo prioritizes its elephant hero and the overall aesthetic feeling—a sort of retro-futurism—over character development and acting, which leaves the human characters feeling thinner than they ought to be. Keaton’s colorful character, aided by an invested performance, is the exception.

photo courtesy of ew.com

     But for some, Dumbo’s charm will outshine its flaws. Burton imbues the movie with a sort of storybook quality, an innocent disposition and a rich color palette. Perhaps it’s the sheer simplicity of the story—Dumbo’s universal need to belong, the inexplicable miracle of flight, the excitement of the circus—that makes the movie feel so wide-eyed and heartwarming. Or perhaps it’s Dumbo himself. The little elephant is easily the best character in the film, and with his big ears and eyes, he’s too cute not to love.

     In other words, Dumbo’s not really about fleshing out a robust story and character arcs. It’s about something much humbler, seen through a child’s eyes, something endearing and special—something that earns it a place among the most worthy of Disney’s live-action remakes.

Dumbo is rated PG for peril/action, some thematic elements, and brief mild language.

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