Dinosaur Review

Dinosaur


Release Date: 15th June 2000 - Australia


Production Companies
Walt Disney Feature Animation
Walt Disney Pictures

Distribution
Walt Disney Studios Motion
Pictures Australia


Genre: Animation/Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 82 minutes


Budget: $127,500,000

Box Office Gross: $349.822,765
(Worldwide)


Plot Summary
Dinosaur follows the 
adventures of an 
Iguanodon named Aladar, 
who is separated from his 
own species as a hatch-ling 
and raised on an island 
paradise by a clan of 
Lemurs. When a devastating 
meteor shower plunges their 
world into chaos, Aladar 
and several members of his 
Lemur family excape to the 
mainland and join a group 
of migrating dinosaurs 
desperately searching for a 
safe new nesting ground. 
With water and food in 
short supply and bloodthirsty 
predators posing an ever-
present danger, the herd 
faces many life-threatening 
obstacles during the course 
of their treacherous trek. 
Aladar's innovative thinking 
and compassion for the 
"misfit" members of the 
herd brings him into conflict 
with Kron, the rigid and 
stone-hearted leader of 
the group, and his loyal 
lieutenant Bruton. Winning 
support from Kron's sister, 
Neera, Aladar reluctantly 
challenges the "traditional 
ways" and shows how 
being adaptable and 
working together is the 
best path for survival.


Voice Cast 
D.B Sweeney - Aladar
Ossie Davis - Yar
Alfre Woodard - Pilo
Max Casella - Zini
Hayden Panettiere - Suri
Samuel E. Wright - Kron
Peter Siragusa - Bruton
Julianna Margulies - Neera
Joan Plowright - Baylene
Della Reese - Eema

Crew
Director - Eric Leighton
Story/Director - Ralph Zondag
Based on an Earlier
Screenplay - Walon Green
Story/Story Director - Thom Enriquez
Story/Screenplay - Robert Nelson Jacobs &
John Harrison
Creative Development - Gregory Gunter
Additional Story - Tamara Lusher
Additional Story Material - Jonathan Roberts &
Rhett Reese
Additional Story Material/Screenplay - Shirley Pierce
Producer - Pam Marsden
Co-Producer - Baker Bloodworth
Production Designer - Walter P. Martishius
Character Designer/Story Artist - Ricardo F. Delgado
Character Designers - David Krentz,
Tina Price & William Stout
Cinematography - David R. Hardberger &
Steven Douglas Smith
Supervising Animator: Neera - Joel Fletcher
Supervising Character Animators - Mark Anthony Austin,
Mike Belzer, Eamonn Butler, Bill Fletcher,
Gregory William Griffith, Tom Roth, Atsushi Sato,
Trey Thomas & Larry White
Supervising Character Animator/Story Artist -
Dick Zondag
Special Effects Supervisor - Roy Goode
Visual Effects Supervisors - Neil Krepela
& Terry Moews
Digital Compositor/Lighting Artist/
Visual Effects Supervisor - Wally Schaab
Digital Effects Supervisor - Neil Eskuri
Film Editor - H. Lee Peterson
Sound Designer and Supervisor/Recordist (Uncredited)/
Supervising Sound Editor (Uncredited)/Re-Recording Mixer -
Christopher Boyes
Additional Music Arranger: Vocals/Conductor Choir -
Lebo M
Music - James Newton Howard
Composers: Additional Music - Gavin Greenaway &
Steve Jablonsky


Review
'DINOSAUR' has very impressive CGI animation that matches up to the effects of the 'Jurassic Park' films. It also has beautiful live-action landscapes that were combined together to create this visual experience, but the biggest problem around the movie is that the plot is too similar to 'The Land Before Time'. The way that the characters talk and act in the movie is probably a bit stupid, not to mention that the dialogue is clunky. It's a shame that Disney was trying to walk into the shadow of Pixar. Still, two things of this animated film I did like are the opening and the music score by James Newton Howard.

With a better plot, characterization, an absence of dialogue except for narration as was originally intended, 'DINOSAUR' would have been a proper and well-loved Disney classic that everyone will be excited and enjoy it.

Star rating: (3/5) Average

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