Years ago, I was given a ticket to RATATOUILLE. Although I had no interest in seeing a movie about a rat who can cook, I had time after work, and there was a screening across the street.
Cut to a hour later - I’m bawling my eyes out, and now I consider it one of the greatest movies of all time. Certainly, it’s one of the best in Pixar’s oeuvre.
Similarly, I have no deep interest in elephants, or carnivals, but I do have a deep love of Tim Burton, whose latest outing, DUMBO doesn’t seem like a Burton film on the surface. However, the themes of the weirdo wanting to belong, believing in yourself, and the importance of family, are vintage Burton.
His visual style is on display here, from the darkened color palette, google glasses, spirals and circus imagery. Frequent collaborators Colleen Atwood and Danny Elfman behind the camera, as well as a few familiar faces in front of the camera, Danny Devito and Eva Green are brought along to complete the classic Disney fairy tale with the Burton touch. Eva’s accent is forced, and Nico Parker’s acting is flat, but Burton always was a visual director anyway.
Collin Ferrel’s father who lost an arm in presumably WWI is adequate, but its flamboyant Michael Keaton, returning to work with Burton for the first time since Batman that steals the scenes he is in.
Although not a huge hit at the box office, and with luke warm reviews, Burton is only as strong as his script. The one he is working with here, is sufficient, and has some intriguing updates from the original.
In this version, the animals don’t talk. So thankfully we are spared racist Jim Crows, but also have diminished Timothy Q. Mouse, whose role in teaching Dumbo to fly, is now delegated to the Farrier family. While the storks don’t deliver Dumbo to his mother, they do make a cameo, serving a metaphorical role at Dumbo’s birth.
While focusing on the human characters, this does diminish the protagonist Dumbo’s role somewhat, a frequent weakness, or interesting element, depending on how you want to look at it, in Burton movies. When we do focus on Dumbo, it’s effective. Burton employs Dumbos’ POV in seemingly fish eye lenses, and distorted audio.
Dumbo’s act is discovered by big business, and swept up into Dreamland, an obvious statement on the corporate culture of Disney. The fact they financed such a meta-element is commendable. Looking like Disneyland on acid, it has that Burton feel we’ve seen in similar parks in BATMAN RETURNS, CHARLIE AND THE CHOCOLATE FACTORY, and BIG FISH.
The ending will please PETA with its statement for animal rights. The Medicci Circus no longer has animals in their acts. And the final shot is Dumbo and mother Jumbo, free with their elephant family in the jungle.
This touching, cute family movie for me, is not as sad as I thought it would be, and is elevated by Burton’s touch. Although a simple tale, it’s given some depth and a few surprises, earning it a B.
Dumbo is told to believe in himself, hold that feather tight, flap his ears, and fly to the heavens. If he can reunite with is mother, earn his freedom, and make his dreams come true and fly, so can you.
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