Dumbo (2019)
Tim Burton's reworking of the early classic Disney cartoon is in my opinion an improvement on the original. During a first half that goes down the cutesy route you might expect, the second half which takes place at the very Burton esq Dreamland is at times a scary fantasy which evokes Batman Returns more than once and certainly has that Burton visual flair especially when accompanied by Danny Elfman's thunderous score which again evokes Batman Returns at times.
It's more an exercise in style over substance as the script has various plot holes but i enjoyed the performances from stars Colin Farrell, Danny Devito, Michael Keaton (There's that Batman Returns link again) and the always watchable Eva Green. The totally CGI elephant with huge ears is the star of the show of course and at times it looks wonderfully realistic.
Depressingly the film goes down the 21st century route of shaming the past especially circus animals which grated somewhat and completely ignored ideas from the original such as the other animals basically bullying the young elephant. It's no surprise that there ain't a crow in site either. The words MUST NOT OFFEND were surely at the top of all production dossiers.
As 100 minutes entertainment it certainly did the trick, but how memorable it actually was remains to be seen. I have my doubts.
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