WATCH: 'PETE’S DRAGON TRAILER' IS 'E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL' MEETS 'HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON'

Jun 17

Jun 17 WATCH: 'PETE’S DRAGON TRAILER' IS 'E.T. THE EXTRA-TERRESTRIAL' MEETS 'HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON'

Disney’s The Jungle Book has been one of the most successful movies to come out this year. It perfectly blended live action with CGI to bring a classic animated movie to life. So the obvious question is where do they go from here? The answer comes in the form of Pete’s Dragon.

The plot seems simple and easy to follow but a bit too predictable. People find lost child who survived because of his Dragon friend. Somebody either thinks Elliot the dragon is too dangerous or wants to utilise him as weapon and from there we’ll just have a fight between the two sides. Hopefully I’m wrong and there’s more to the story than that. In 2016, where stories have been crafted so beautifully, Pete’s Dragon seems to opt for a more lacklustre and overused narrative to drive the movie forward.

I do have to say that the CGI quality is not on par to that of past Disney live action adaptations. Elliot (the Dragon), looks too cartoony and more like as if he was pulled straight out of Monster’s Inc. Character movements for the dragon seem excellent but the general sharpness in quality that came with The Jungle Book is no where to be seen here. There is still plenty of time for them to smooth things out and with any luck, the finished product should look better.

Relative newcomer Oakes Fegley plays the role of Pete and is accompanied by Bryce Dallas Howard (Jurassic World) and Robert Redford (Captain America: The Winter Soldier). All actors give great performances in their respective roles with Oakes doing especially well as the titular character.

I can confidently say that while this movie will be good, a lacklustre, tired narrative may block it from being a great film. During the entire trailer it feels as if something is missing. Something that helps draw the viewer in. There's a lack of charm which I fear will ultimately come through in the final product. I could always be proven wrong. We’ll have to wait till August 12th to find out.

Synopsis from IMDB:

The adventures of an orphaned boy named Pete and his best friend Elliot, who just so happens to be a dragon.