Directed By Tim Burton

Starring – Colin Farrell, Eva Green, Michael Keaton

The Plot – Holt (Farrell) was once a circus star, but he went off to war and when he returned it had terribly altered him. Circus owner Max Medici (Danny DeVito) hires him to take care of Dumbo, a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him the laughing stock of the struggling circus troupe. But when Holt’s children discover that Dumbo can fly, silver-tongued entrepreneur V.A. Vandevere (Keaton), and aerial artist Colette Marchant (Green) swoop in to make the little elephant a star.

Rated PG for peril/action, some thematic elements, and brief mild adult language

POSITIVES

– Just enough deviation. For my money, there’s a strong combination between the familiarity of scenes from the original animated property, as well as a healthy helping of experimentation with the gut-punch of the source material, that allows the film enough balance to prosper without playing it safe and conventional, as Disney often does with these live actions remakes. What surprised me most is the focus and unapologetic attention rendered to animal abuse, especially under that of a business model, which allowed the script to master some of its finer dramatic elements, in turn transcending itself from the safety net of feeling like a Disney movie. Part of that is on Burton’s gritty surface level temperature, which at times does push towards a PG-13 direction of harsh realities, but swings itself back around for more of the fantastical imagery needed to transfix the youthful audience.

– The complex case of Ben Davis. As a cinematographer, Davis is a mixed bag. After the bland presentation that was “Captain Marvel”, he redeems himself here, getting lost in a Burton-esque world, complete with weathered color design and the vibrancy of the circus, which transfixes and serves as an ode to fantasy visuals. The glowing of radiant lights surround our characters, giving the setting a surreal feel of the attention they command over the army of eyes ready to be dazzled, and placing these familiar faces in cast in a place and time far from anything they’ve ever been a part of. Whether Burton opened up the mind to expand Ben’s creativity, is a question we’ll never know the answer to, but one thing remains certain: he has a visual encompass that perfectly captures the radiance and imagination that lives and breathes in this palace of outcasts, and with such an echoing ambiance, we too are delighted to be a part of it.

– Superb visual effects. While not perfect in its movements during scenes of flight for its title character, I can say that the illustrations and aesthetics associated with the film do master not only a believable quality to the color and shapes of its animals, but also a heavy one with the way its manufactured properties interact with the sets surrounding them. In my opinion, it’s the details in attention to Dumbo, complete with wrinkled skin texture and baby blue eyes as big as oceans, that take the cake, and blend synthetically with the grade in visual cinematography that I previously mentioned above. Nothing ever feels counterfeit or out of place to the integrity of each frame, and masters a visual immersion that is second only to 2016’s “The Jungle Book” in terms of spell-binding accuracy.

– Elaborate set designs. Where does one start with the single best aspect of the movie? Perhaps in the intimate atmosphere of the small-stage circus, complete with man-made posters and signs, giving it that cult-like quality of better days being behind this family troop. Or maybe it’s the collision of present and future in the devil’s nest known as “Dreamworld”, garnering no shortage of stadium lighting, ride attractions, and the promise of science to hook its curious minds. Every prop or gimmick in the film holds immense weight to the complexion between two completely different settings, and this allows us the audience to be visually seduced by the pageantry of it all, in the same way that these performers thirsty for a chance are embracing for the first time ever. Instead of telling us what makes these places so different, Burton shows us, and it’s in that immense size where we understand the disposition of being seduced by greed, regardless of who gets hurt along the way.

– Burton brings his posse. What’s unique about this film is that it not only brings forth some of Burton’s most favorite alum, but it also treats us to a reunion of one of his most legendary films: “Batman Returns”. I couldn’t get enough of seeing Danny Devito and Keaton interacting, albeit in reverse protagonist and antagonist roles from their previous engagement, but there’s definitely a winner between them. Keaton easily steals the show from the rest of the gifted ensemble, chewing up enough scenery with a hokey inconsistent accent and relish for the fame, which make this role unlike anything we’ve ever seen from the decades-old performer. If Keaton has one adversary in scene-stealing however, it’s definitely from 14-year-old Nico Parker, who herself comes from acting royalty being the daughter of Thandie Newton. Parker has the childlike innocence in facial resonation, but it’s really the sass that boils just below the surface that made her endearing to the cause, and made her so vital to Dumbo’s development as a stage act throughout the movie. In fact, the film knows this so much that it focuses repeatedly on her, and nearly forgets about her on-screen brother (Played by Finley Hobbins).

– Perfectly paced. At 104 minutes, “Dumbo” is more than double the screen time of its animated predecessor, so immediately you know that plenty is going to be added to the story and subplots associated with the film, and thankfully I can say that all of it works in a way that never dulls or sags with the movement of the material. For a movie that thrives on redundancy, in that we’re seeing a lot of these scenes repeated to perfect the act of the flying elephant, there’s a surprisingly increased interest with each passing scene because the stakes are being constantly raised, not only for our big-eared protagonist, but also for the family that have taken him in to this point. It, as well as the fact that the entire second half of this movie is new material for the Dumbo folklore, gives the film strong urgency and uncertainty for where the story is headed, and despite its desire to repeat so much of what comes and goes, there’s not a single sequence during the film that I would change to fan dwindling interest. I was glued to my seat throughout this film, and that isn’t easy to do with someone like me who doesn’t support Disney live action remakes.

NEGATIVES

– An unwanted guest. Legendary ring announcer Michael Buffer makes two surprise appearances in the film, and you can pretty much guess what his involvement is here, as well as what line he mutters that made me completely want to punch a wall for how it broke my immersion into the film. I compare it a lot to 2013’s “The Great Gatsby” when rap music is being played throughout the film, despite the fact that this is taking place in 1922, when rap genre music wasn’t even a glint in the beatboxer who developed it. Buffer’s involvement in this film is every bit as cringey as it is unnecessary to the integrity of the time period and the consistency of the movie’s tone, and it reeks of desperation in the worst way possible.

– Lack of human character development. There’s so many scattered plot threads introduced early on in the film that are never followed upon or elaborated further with for the integrity of depth needed for the people whose names aren’t in the title. Dumbo is Dumbo. He will be alright regardless of what we learn about him, but it’s really those other pivotal leads who are never given the light of day to enhance your interest into them, particularly that of Colin Farrell’s wartime hero, who goes virtually unnoticed during the climax of this movie, minus climbing a stadium sized building along the side of it with one freaking arm, and without any sweat or conflict what so ever. I wish this film wasn’t afraid to dig a little deeper with the people we spend the most time with, and as it stands we learn more about a character who doesn’t talk than people who can’t shut up.

– Ruining a solid musical score. Legendary composer Danny Elfman pens one of his most emotionally stirring scores in quite some time, bringing along compositions that impact important scenes, just not in the way I was positively hoping. The music elevates the scenes, but it’s done in such a way that is mixed far too loud in each scene of inclusion, making it stand out as more of a distraction rather than a necessary inclusion, and it takes something that should feel inspirational, and instead brings out the emphasis in meandering from the audience what they are supposed to be feeling. Elfman brings the lightning, but the deafening delve of its level of incorporation is the thunder that unnecessarily shakes.

– Disappearing antagonists. One of my favorite clichés from movies is when a bad guy character will disappear in favor of a bigger, badder character, and that’s totally the case here, as a throwaway character during the first act, who says some of the most ridiculous lines to children that I’ve ever heard, practically vanishes once Vandevere’s character is brought to the forefront. Think of it as the movie’s inability to build two of the same characters simultaneously, but I think it’s a testament to just how unnecessary this prior antagonist feels, especially when you consider that he exists in an environment where everyone else interacts so positively.

My Grade: 6/10 or C