I have to admit, I am such a Disney girl. And, I absolutely love animated films…especially those with a great soundtrack. Music created just for the scene, often sung by the characters, with melodic, harmonic notes woven among lyrics that often inspire laughter, bring tears, or simply solidify a character’s state of mind just makes me swoon and smile. Some of the best animated film music has been created by the likes of Alan Menken and Randy Newman and I was sorry to see that both were absent from the soundtrack of "Brave." Although Scottish Composer Patrick Doyle did a phenomenal job creating the score, I missed having that one identifying song sung by the lead character that, for me, has become such a classic staple in a Disney film. The flavor and feel of the 10th century Scottish Highlands was captured wonderfully in the music, but a Princess without her song is like a fairy tale without a happy ending… incomplete.
That being said, our lead character, Princess Merida, lacked a really great theme song and that dropped the film a notch for me on the awesome scale. The best one of note was "Touch the Sky." It was a folksy-fun catchy tune, (that gave me the urge to skip around a maypole) performed by Scottish Gaelic singer, Julie Fowlis, but not actually "sung" by our main character. I missed the great hook of a great lead character's song. Sorry folks. It had to be said. However, it was a beautiful score, and it made me want to go to Scotland. Or, at the very least, pull out Michael Flatley's "Celtic Tiger" DVD.
As for the storyline, I think Pixar did a nice job of telling a simple tale. Not quite as exciting as I hoped it would be, but adequate in it's overall story. There were quite a few hysterical giggles from my kids when the Scottish kilts were flipped up and they caught sight of a character’s bum and there were a lot of classic cartoon stunts to raise the chuckle factor for them. However, I was slightly disappointed in the lack of the adult end of the humor, as Pixar usually does a tremendous job of incorporating some smirks and classic one-liners just for us grown-ups.
One area that rose above all other animated films I have seen was the quality of the animation. I can only use two-words to describe it: simply breathtaking. Those probably aren’t words you would normally expect to be used when talking about a kids’ cartoon film, but “Brave” is much more than that with regard to its animated style. I discovered that, after 25 years, Pixar completely re-wrote it's animation system to create those stunning visual effects. Princess Merida's hair was a wild, red, untamed character of its own! I was absolutely mesmerized by its complexity and beauty on the screen. And it was her hair. Another favorite feast for the eyes was the animation of her Clydesdale horse, Angus. The way he interacted with her, the realistic look of his coat, and how his long-haired hooves moved across the screen was incredible! "Brave" does an extraordinary job of creating almost pure realism in certain scenes, and then layers it with a fun, whimsical quality that is unique to Pixar. Surprisingly, there was even one scene that reminded me of a Tim Burton film. In it, Princess Merida’s super-realistic hair emblazoned around her Kewpie doll painted figure was such a stark contrast to the Claymation-like, black and white retro-feel of the spooky forest she was creeping through, that I couldn't help but think of Burton's "Nightmare Before Christmas," or his upcoming, "Frankenweenie." It. Was. Awesome. Scenes like that, along with many others in this film, are mind blowing to me. They are stunning pieces of art created by exceptionally talented visual artists and designers that are often over-looked and under-appreciated.
Although it still didn’t manage to knock one of my all-time favorites out of its top slot ("Tangled"), "Brave" was a cute, enjoyable film, with extraordinary imagery. It was a story of courage and a story of change and acceptance and those are qualities I hold very dear to my heart. As many of my blog followers know, "courage" is my 2012 catch word and has been something I try to inspire in myself and others. Whereas “Tangled,” for me, not only represents those same qualities, it also embodies too many good one-liners to count, along with a killer theme song (“I See the Light”) that just about sums up my entire life as of late.
Short on one-line hilarity and only slightly disappointing in the music, "Brave" more than delivers on the quality of animation and authenticity of the era. For me, the very best line of the movie was the very last line spoken, and, unfortunately, probably missed by most of the younger audience. This line nailed it home for me and got the tears flowing as a Scottish melody rang out behind these words: “Our fate lives within us. We only have to be brave enough to see it.”
Bravo, "Brave." Bravo.