Allow me to speak candidly about my adoration for Andrew Stanton’s Oscar-winning animated masterpiece, Finding Nemo. Without a moment of hesitation, I loudly and proudly proclaim  it as the best animated film of this millennium. Not even Shrek, Up, Toy Story 3 or any of the countless other overwhelmingly successful Disney & Pixar releases manage to stand quite as tall as Marlin’s cross-ocean journey to find his son. Therefore, upon hearing news of Stanton’s long-awaited sequel, Finding Dory, I was forced to balance comparable levels of both joy and skepticism. Thankfully, this newest inclusion in the underwater saga is anything but a disappointment.

After the forgetful blue tang fish, Dory (voice of Ellen DeGeneres), helps her new clown fish friend, Marlin (Albert Brooks), find his son, Nemo, she begins to experience cloudy memories of her past. And as she pieces all of these thoughts together, Dory finally remembers her loving parents and embarks on a journey of her own to find them. But despite Marlin’s lack of interest in venturing across the vast ocean yet again, he and Nemo join her on another fun-filled journey of family connection.

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Much like his 2003 hit, Finding Nemo, Stanton’s latest endeavor succeeds with its close attention to detail. As expected, the animation is spectacular and the story is cute and endearing. Yet, Finding Dory‘s most memorable moments come courtesy of a fresh new collection of quirky characters. Ed O’Neill shines as the voice of Hank, a cunning octopus with dreams of living the easy life at the Cleveland Aquarium. But Hank is merely the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the many hysterical new faces that Finding Dory introduces. Most sequels will attempt to reuse their supporting characters, story structure and other winning facets of the original in order to cash in at the box office. However, Finding Dory elevates its game and provides a wide arrangement of interesting new ideas and characters that make it a strong stand-alone film all on its own.

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Despite culminating as a clear winning effort, there are a few areas of concern that prevent Finding Dory from shining as brightly as its predecessor. The biggest flaw lies in the film’s unwillingness to stay grounded in reality. One of the most appealing aspects of Finding Nemo was, once humans were introduced into the film, the story still remains believable. To the contrary, Finding Dory completely breaks down in its third act and shatters any sense of realism that it ever achieved. Furthermore, the film’s story is much narrower in scope than its source material. Consequently, Finding Dory is forced to rely heavily on cheaper writing tactics such as flashbacks and convoluted obstacles to help extend it’s story. These blemishes are by no means detrimental to the film’s success, yet they clearly create a divide between this entry and the upper echelon work that Disney & Pixar have provided over the years.

Tender, charming and witty all in large doses, Finding Dory is a guaranteed Oscar contender for Best Animated Feature and a worthy sequel. You’ll fully embrace the return of these lovable characters as well as a fresh new batch that you can add to the list. June has been a rather disappointing month to the 2016 summer blockbuster season, but Finding Dory is a ray of sunshine that you should soak in before it’s gone.

GRADE: 3.5/5

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Briefly: Following the latest teaser from earlier this year, Disney today released a hilarious, short new international teaser for this Summer’s Finding Dory.

As revealed back at D23, the film “reunites Dory with friends Nemo and Marlin on a search for answers about her past. What can she remember? Who are her parents? And where did she learn to speak Whale? Also featuring the voices of Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy, Disney·”

I was a huge fan of Finding Nemo while growing up (well, I’m a huge fan of most Pixar films, I guess), and as such, I cannot wait to see what’s in store for Dory, Nemo, Marlin, and pals when Finding Dory hits theatres on June 17th.

Take a look at the full trailer below, and let us know how nostalgic and warm it makes you feel.

Briefly: Following the first trailer from all the way back in November, Disney today released a hilarious, short new international teaser for this Summer’s Finding Dory.

As revealed back at D23, the film “reunites Dory with friends Nemo and Marlin on a search for answers about her past. What can she remember? Who are her parents? And where did she learn to speak Whale? Also featuring the voices of Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy, Disney·”

I was a huge fan of Finding Nemo while growing up (well, I’m a huge fan of most Pixar films, I guess), and as such, I cannot wait to see what’s in store for Dory, Nemo, Marlin, and pals when Finding Dory hits theatres on June 17th.

Take a look at the teaser below, and be sure to let us know what you hope to see in the feature!

Briefly: It feels as though it was just yesterday that Disney/Pixar debuted the first poster for next year’s Finding Dory (it was), and today the company has launched the first teaser trailer to go with it.

The trailer debuted this morning, naturally, on Ellen DeGeneres’ EllenTube, and even from this hilarious, brief first footage, its clear that Finding Dory should easily match the tone, heart, and humour of Finding Nemo.

As announced at D23, the film “reunites Dory with friends Nemo and Marlin on a search for answers about her past. What can she remember? Who are her parents? And where did she learn to speak Whale? Also featuring the voices of Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy, Disney·”

Pixar hit a home run with this Summer’s Inside Out, and I already know that I’ll be bawling my eyes out when The Good Dinosaur hits theatres later this month. That said, Finding Nemo remains one of my favourite animated films of all time, and as such, I’m incredibly excited to see some footage from this one.

Take a look at the trailer below, and be sure to let us know what you think! Finding Dory swims into theaters on June 17, 2016.

Briefly: We haven’t heard a lot from the Finding Dory front in quite some time now (aside from a little bit of news at this year’s D23), but today Disney has debuted the very first teaser poster for its anticipated sequel, and it’s pretty damned adorable.

As announced at D23, the film “reunites Dory with friends Nemo and Marlin on a search for answers about her past. What can she remember? Who are her parents? And where did she learn to speak Whale? Also featuring the voices of Albert Brooks, Diane Keaton and Eugene Levy, Disney·”

Pixar hit a home run with this Summer’s Inside Out, and I already know that I’ll be bawling my eyes out when The Good Dinosaur hits theatres later this month. That said, Finding Nemo remains one of my favourite animated films of all time, and as such, I’m incredibly excited to see some footage from this one.

Take a look at the poster below, and be sure to let us know what you think! Finding Dory swims into theaters on June 17, 2016.

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In July of 2012, Pixar announced that John Carter director (and Finding Nemo co-director) Andrew Stanton would helm the next instalment in the Finding Nemo franchise. Since then, we’ve heard plenty of casting news (well, at least Albert Brooks and Ellen Degeneres), but nothing about the either the film’s plot, or when we’d be able to see it.

Today, Disney announced the film’s title, release date, and a little bit of plot detail. Finding Dory will swim into theatres on November 25, 2015. From the press release, the plot takes place “about a year after the first film, and features returning favorites Marlin, Nemo and the Tank Gang, among others. Set in part along the California coastline, the story also welcomes a host of new characters, including a few who will prove to be a very important part of Dory’s life.”

Well, I’m in. I love Finding Nemo and the world that Pixar created for it. I can’t wait to jump into this one.

Read the full press release below, and let us know what you think!

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When Dory said “just keep swimming” in 2003’s Oscar®-winning film “Finding Nemo,” she could not have imagined what was in store for her (not that she could remember). Ellen DeGeneres, voice of the friendly-but-forgetful blue tang fish, revealed details today about Disney•Pixar’s “Finding Dory”—an all-new big-screen adventure diving into theaters on Nov. 25, 2015.

 

“I have waited for this day for a long, long, long, long, long, long time,” said DeGeneres. “I’m not mad it took this long. I know the people at Pixar were busy creating ‘Toy Story 16.’ But the time they took was worth it. The script is fantastic. And it has everything I loved about the first one: It’s got a lot of heart, it’s really funny, and the best part is—it’s got a lot more Dory.”

 

Director and Pixar veteran Andrew Stanton takes audiences back to the extraordinary underwater world created in the original film. “There is no Dory without Ellen,” said Stanton. “She won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world—not to mention our team here at Pixar. One thing we couldn’t stop thinking about was why she was all alone in the ocean on the day she met Marlin. In ‘Finding Dory,’ she will be reunited with her loved ones, learning a few things about the meaning of family along the way.”

 

According to Stanton, “Finding Dory” takes place about a year after the first film, and features returning favorites Marlin, Nemo and the Tank Gang, among others. Set in part along the California coastline, the story also welcomes a host of new characters, including a few who will prove to be a very important part of Dory’s life.

 

“Finding Nemo” won the 2003 Academy Award® for Best Animated Feature; the film was nominated for three additional Oscars® (Best Writing, Original Screenplay; Best Music, Original Score; Best Sound Editing). It was also nominated for a Golden Globe® Award for Best Motion Picture–Comedy or Musical. In 2008, the American Film Institute named “Finding Nemo” among the top 10 greatest animated films ever made. At the time of its release, “Finding Nemo” was the highest grossing G-rated movie of all time. It’s currently the fourth highest grossing animated film worldwide. The film has more than 16 million Likes on Facebook, and Dory—with more than 24 million—is the most Liked individual character from a Disney or Disney•Pixar film.

 

DeGeneres’ distinctive comic voice has resonated with audiences from her first stand-up comedy appearances through her work today on television, in film and in the literary world. Her syndicated talk show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” is in its 10th season and has earned 38 Daytime Emmy® Awards. DeGeneres has won 12 People’s Choice Awards and the Teen Choice Award for Choice Comedian for three consecutive years. Additionally, her show won two Genesis Awards and a GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Talk Show Episode. For her unforgettable turn as Dory, DeGeneres was nominated for an MTV Movie Award for Best Comedic Performance.

Plot details are still scare on this one (and by scarce I mean nonexistent), but who wouldn’t want to jump back into Nemo‘s world?

 

Finding Nemo 2 news has been circling around since Summer 2012, when we learned that Finding Nemo co-director Andrew Stanton would be sitting in the chair solo for the sequel. Fan favourite Ellen Degeneres then signed to reprise her role as Dory, which left everyone wondering whether Albert Brooks would be back as well.

 

Today, you rest easy; Albert Brooks has signed on for Finding Nemo 2, according to Deadline. He’ll be reprising his role of Marlin for the new film.

 

No word yet on who will be voicing Nemo, as I’m guessing that Alexander Gould‘s voice has changed slightly since 2003.

 

Finding Nemo 2 is expected to hit theatres in 2016.

 

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Andrew Stanton’s first live-action movie John Carter may have been a gigantic flop for Disney but that doesn’t seem to be stopping Stanton from getting work. Deadline is reporting that Stanton has officially come on-board as the director for the sequel to Finding Nemo. Pixar won’t confirm this of course but his working on the sequel makes complete sense. He did after all win not one but two Oscars for Pixar with Finding Nemo and Wall-E.

The sequel is in development so no other details are known at this time but supposedly Disney is also open to the giving him another crack at directing a live-action movie. Sure, John Carter was a $200 million dollar loss for the studio but that’s not Andrew Stanton’s fault. I thought it was a great movie but was just marketed wrong. I look forward to seeing more from him.