Here is the animated film from Netflix I've had low expectations on. The trailer presented mediocre results, but I still wanted to see if the movie probably had something I just wasn't seeing. And here it is. Back to the Outback. Was is worth it?
The basic premise is that four animals, where they'd be venomous, spikey, or just plain vicious, are tired of being judged as monsters and escape the reptile park they've been held captive in to live in the wild. I neat idea. Never heard it attempted before, so let's see how it's done.
When it comes to the execution, I have mixed feeling towards it. For one, the tone is pretty consistent and knows when to jump for silly to serious. The moral is of course 'don't judge a book by it's cover', which has been a thousand times before, but is still relevant to the film. Probably the aspect that I'm most mixed o was the humour. While there were plenty of times I laughed a bit, there were also plenty of times I found myself facepalming, mainly when it comes to the comedy I most despise; toilet humour.
The characters did generate mixed results as well. For starters, we have our four judged protagonists. Maddie the Inland taipan is a tolerable protagonist. A little bland, but not so shallow. When it comes to Pretty Boy, now that's where the movie gets tough to watch. Around the first half, he is such a despicable jerk. It's especially hard to like him when he tells Maddie and her friends that no family would ever want them. I never thought it a character could loose his credibility in when he first says a word. He does get more tolerable in the end, but that's like an old filthy bus that was just fitted with air conditioning, just a minor improvement. The rest of the cast range from decent like Frank the funnel-web spider, Zoe the thorny devil, and Jackie the saltwater crocodile, and bland like Chaz the antagonistic zookeeper.
Probably the movie's strongpoint is the animation. The representation of Australia ranging from Sydney to the Blue Mountains to the Outback is well crafted. And the character designs are nicely done too. The cute appearance of our heroes kinda supports the film's message about not judging others. The character animation is also spot on, with a decent blend between cartoony and down-to-earth movements. It's no secret that this was done by the talented artists responsible for The Book of Life.
I certainly found it a bumpy but enjoyable ride. Only held back by a few unfunny jokes and it's predictability, Back to the Outback is still a fun flick I'm glad I had the time to watch. While I'm sure it will be hit-or-miss for the adult crowd, it looks like just enough to keep kids entertained throughout the running time. It's colourful, cute, funny, and at times heartwarming. A definite recommendation for those under 12.
The basic premise is that four animals, where they'd be venomous, spikey, or just plain vicious, are tired of being judged as monsters and escape the reptile park they've been held captive in to live in the wild. I neat idea. Never heard it attempted before, so let's see how it's done.
When it comes to the execution, I have mixed feeling towards it. For one, the tone is pretty consistent and knows when to jump for silly to serious. The moral is of course 'don't judge a book by it's cover', which has been a thousand times before, but is still relevant to the film. Probably the aspect that I'm most mixed o was the humour. While there were plenty of times I laughed a bit, there were also plenty of times I found myself facepalming, mainly when it comes to the comedy I most despise; toilet humour.
The characters did generate mixed results as well. For starters, we have our four judged protagonists. Maddie the Inland taipan is a tolerable protagonist. A little bland, but not so shallow. When it comes to Pretty Boy, now that's where the movie gets tough to watch. Around the first half, he is such a despicable jerk. It's especially hard to like him when he tells Maddie and her friends that no family would ever want them. I never thought it a character could loose his credibility in when he first says a word. He does get more tolerable in the end, but that's like an old filthy bus that was just fitted with air conditioning, just a minor improvement. The rest of the cast range from decent like Frank the funnel-web spider, Zoe the thorny devil, and Jackie the saltwater crocodile, and bland like Chaz the antagonistic zookeeper.
Probably the movie's strongpoint is the animation. The representation of Australia ranging from Sydney to the Blue Mountains to the Outback is well crafted. And the character designs are nicely done too. The cute appearance of our heroes kinda supports the film's message about not judging others. The character animation is also spot on, with a decent blend between cartoony and down-to-earth movements. It's no secret that this was done by the talented artists responsible for The Book of Life.
I certainly found it a bumpy but enjoyable ride. Only held back by a few unfunny jokes and it's predictability, Back to the Outback is still a fun flick I'm glad I had the time to watch. While I'm sure it will be hit-or-miss for the adult crowd, it looks like just enough to keep kids entertained throughout the running time. It's colourful, cute, funny, and at times heartwarming. A definite recommendation for those under 12.