Starring: Ellen DeGeneres, Albert Brooks, Ed O’Neill
Director: Andrew Stanton, Angus MacLane
Dory (DeGeneres) is living with Nemo and his father Marlin (Brooks) in the reef when she starts to remember the parents she got separated from years before. She sets off to find them, with Marlin and Nemo in tow, til the two get split up. Now Dory must find her parents before she forgets them, and the two clown fish must find her before she forgets them.
On the whole, the film functions a lot like the first, with Dory lost like Nemo was in the first, and trapped in a aquarium. But since most of the action takes place in that location, namely the Monterey Bay Aquarium, it lack some of the adventure. In the first film, it was all about realism, with a focus on the facts, here the fish are thrown from tank to tank, which feels much more slapstick in tone than the first film. Also, it turns out that Blue Tangs are not all suffering from a short attention span and ten second memory, just Dory.
There’s a lot of heart in this film, but less laughs that the original, it’s far less quotable. It’s entertaining fare, but not as good as the original. But Ellen’s energy, as always, is delightful.
See If It: should please the kids and Pixar or Disney fans, but doesn’t stand up to the original.
Wildfire Movies 
I agree 100%. The only thing to add is the often discussed aspect of kids with disabilities or learning difficulties and their parents. Those scenes resonate with a wide audience and would have meant a great deal to those particular people who often don’t see their struggles onscreen. I’m sure we all lost it in the pebble scene, I know I did but that doesn’t change that the original was better.
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I watched this with hope and whilst I loved certain scenes (Dory is always so amusing), I did find it lacked a little spirit that I found in Finding Nemo but sometimes you can’t always be on par with the original but the animation is lovely as before.
I forgot what I was talking about..
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Ha ha! Cute punchline there. 😆 Yes, I agree with you. It’s a sweet film but not as spirited as the first. But Dory is a boss. 🐠
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