Passing judgment on Pixar movies can be a dangerous task. Almost inevitably, any unforgiving critique will encounter strident challenges from Pixar enthusiasts. I can say quite confidently, however, that The Good Dinosaur may very well be the most under-hyped film Pixar has ever released. This dearth of publicity is the product of several factors, not the least of which is a release in the shadow of the highly-anticipated and much-appreciated Inside Out, also by Pixar, earlier in June. Throw in a rocky production process—with one change of director, a huge story and cast overhaul, and two revised release dates—and you have yourself a box-office flop in the making. Whatever the causes, the general awareness of The Good Dinosaur, directed by Peter Sohn (Partly Cloudy, Ponyo), remains astonishingly low, and its overall reception astoundingly tepid. While some might suggest that Pixar has overreached in its attempt to deliver two big animated films in one year, I beg to differ.
