Review: Dumbo
Director Tim Burton's efforts in recent years have been hit and miss, sometimes reaching the wonderfully heartfelt and quirky heights of his best-known works (Beetlejuice, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood) but, more often than not, feeling like half-hearted simulations relying on the oddball fantasia to distract from the emptiness. That Burton feels more focused and engaged in Dumbo, Disney's latest live-action remake of one of its beloved animated classics, is already a positive sign, though the film does have moments when it feels laboured and the emotions that it elicits are automatic human responses rather than feelings stirred by joy and wonder. Nevertheless, Dumbo is a solid piece of craftsmanship buoyed by its irresistible central character and performances by a consistently funny Danny DeVito and the ever-enchanting Eva Green.
The film begins at the end of World War I as veteran Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) returns to the Medici Brothers' Circus, run by DeVito's Max Medici. Farrier discovers that, during his absence, he has lost his wife to illness and that his horses have been sold to help the circus stay afloat. No longer able to be the star performer he once was - he lost an arm in battle - Farrier finds himself charged with taking care of the elephants, one of whom gives birth to a baby boy named with the most beautiful blue eyes and oversized ears. Aghast that his much-publicised latest attraction is not the adorable baby he expected it to be, Medici orders Farrier to disguise Dumbo's ears come performance time.
Naturally, Dumbo's ears are exposed, leaving him vulnerable to the sneers and jeers from the audience. His mother, incited by a nasty circus hand, rushes to protect her child, causing damage and mayhem and resulting in her being sold. The abandoned Dumbo is consoled by Farrier's two children, Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins), who discover that he can fly with the help of an ingested feather. Unsurprisingly, the film really kicks into gear during the flying sequences, which are as exhilarating as one would hope. Yet it doesn't quite hit the mark and that is because Dumbo's plight does not have the emotional power that it should.
Yes, one's heartstrings are well pulled at the sight of Dumbo and his mother being separated and, yes, one is indignant at Dumbo's initial mistreatment. That the character is very much in line with Burton's gallery of misunderstood outsiders is evident, but it doesn't take away from the feeling that this is Burton and Disney 101. Of course, the original Dumbo was very much Disney 101 but the simplicity and brevity of its narrative was suffused with such purity of spirit and genuine human emotion. Compare that to the unnecessary frippery that garbs Burton's rendering. It's enjoyable enough, but one wishes for something more.
Dumbo
Directed by: Tim Burton
Written by: Ehren Kruger
Starring: Colin Farrell, Michael Keaton, Danny DeVito, Eva Green, Alan Arkin, Nico Parker, Finley Hobbins
