Brave

Good enough for one viewing, but afterwards I laughed out loud at the thought of ever watching Brave again. An animated average that doesn't entertain as well as an adult would expect it to, and it’s only really good as part of a children's programme during the lazy Christmas holidays. It’s a shame. (01/20/2013)

Has emancipation finally broken into animated films? Merida is probably the first female Disney protagonist whose satisfaction in life is not bound to a prince or some other male character. That seems to be the film’s aim at the beginning, when the girl’s headstrong nature is manifested mainly through “male” behaviour. In her predetermined role as an obedient girl, she is unable to fulfil her desire for freedom, expressed through boisterous horse riding. The feminine clothes that she wears, including the wimple under which she must hide her fiery red hair, which hinder her in archery, clearly stifle her true nature. The absence of a female role model contributes to her masculinisation. She is surrounded only by stereotypical images of femininity (the good-hearted maid, the strait-laced mother) whose role in the girl’s transformation is surprisingly more important in the end than the role of the male suitors, who are (literally) only MacGuffins. Merida perhaps identifies more with her father, who was permanently cursed in the past, when he (in)famously fought a bear, but he is not a major inspiration for her. Instead, her mother becomes her inspiration. The true role of women in the patriarchy – women are the prey; men are the hunters – fittingly becomes apparent only after her metamorphosis. Merida and her mother can change this situation only by joining forces. As in many maternal melodramas, the central conflict arises from the daughter’s disrespect for her mother, but its resolution is mostly successful in avoiding melodramatic clichés. The emblematic scene in which Merida is forced to combine who she should be with who she wants to be (repairing the tapestry while on horseback) to save one of her parents is rather mature, and not only for an animated movie. The joy of the mature approach to the female character is diminished by the infantilism of the narrative. It wasn’t previously customary for Pixar to constantly shift focus to attractions at the expense of character development and deepening of the plot. Almost everything important is addressed in the action (or directly by means of the action). The smooth continuity of the chain of action scenes with emphasis on there always being something to look at and something to be entertaining does not leave any room or time for more enduring emotions. In a certain way, the ground-breaking view of what had previously been solely male territory from the female perspective is thus mainly quick entertainment whose true value is buried under heaps of action and comical clowning around. 75% (12/30/2012)

Pixar's 13th feature film. It's not quite what it needs to be, though the basic premise is good. The lamplighters took an old Gaelic legend retold by Robert San Souci's Brave Margaret, threw in a little something of their own, and the first Scottish princess was born. Although it has good jokes here and there, it fails to evoke a sufficiently magical atmosphere. However, certain rebellious girls might like it. (04/05/2020)

A fairytale for moms and their daughters. Entertaining, playful and visually engaging Irish buffoonery with family values as a bonus. The overall conception reminds me more of a Disney movie than a Pixar “go get ‘em movie, slightly different again" movie. The teddy-bear style of the story adds to its cuteness, but shows narrative structures already seen. But still, it’s a pleasant watch. Brave is a must for girls both little and big. (11/04/2012)

I really, really needed to relax. These cartoons are exactly what one needs once in a while; one meaning me. In any case, it was a really nice fairytale. I liked how they played around with the Scottish environments and with the overall atmosphere of the sceneries and kings ofthose times. It was really nice, but I would have chosen a more epic story for that kind of an environment. The bears didn’t really sit well with me. And that was the biggest issue. But both the animation and the music were truly nice and that’s what made me stay and watch it till the end. And I felt really nice afterwards. (05/26/2013)