I highly recommend this film. I think most of you will find it entertaining, as well as exciting. Be warned however, you will pay twice to see this one. First, of course, at the box office, and secondly sitting through twenty seven minutes (count em) of previews of upcoming childrenâs movies, all animated and all terrible. By the time they were over I felt like I had been through a chamber of horrors, second only to the elongated weather forecasts thrust on those of us who watch the evening news.
This is the third good circus movie over the past few years, the first Water for Elephants (2011), and Hugh Jackmanâs The Greatest Showman (2015). Interestingly enough all three of these manage to expose the sometimes dark underbelly of life under the âbig top.â Director Tim Burton, whose movies I have never liked, or even bothered to go to, does a superb job on this one in the remake of Disneyâs 1941 animated classic.
Dumbo
Entertainment Rating: ★★★
Rating: PG-13; Family Fare
Possible Oscar Nominations: unlikely
The story starts in Sarasota, Florida (where else) in the spring of 1919 as the Medici Family Circus is preparing to launch its new season, touring the southeast, one small town after another. Danny DeVito plays owner Max Medici and gives us a performance that only he can. When the tour reaches Joplin, Mo., one of the elephants gives birth and the story takes off from there. The baby elephantâs ears make him a laughing stock at first, but not for long. His young handlers stumble across the means to get him to fly, and by that time the viewer is already in love with the little guy.
As word gets out opportunists come to call, headed by Michael Keaton, who oozes âgreaseâ as he negotiates with DeVito, laying out a plan where everyone will get rich, capitalizing on Dumboâs flying skills. One thing leads to another and the whole gang ends up in the âBig Apple,â where the amazing little pachyderm performs to sold-out crowds. And I gotta tell you, even though we all know those are computer generated, you become mesmerized by the little guy in action, youâd swear he was real.
There are of course underlying plots throughout, many of them driven by greed, some by love and others compassion. The result is an ending you may not have thought of as you entered the theater, but the conclusion is exciting, colorful, stressful, and emotional. It is unlikely there will be any Oscar nominations for Dumbo, but it will certainly be one of my favorite movies for 2019, no matter what else comes along.
On another note this is my fifth anniversary with the Sun Day News. Iâve enjoyed the ride and always love hearing from you. Thanks for your support.
