DUMBO
Director : Tim Burton
Year : 2019
Genre : Fantasy
Rating : *1/2
Continuing Disney's dismaying trend of pointlessly remaking their classic animations into live action features, this lumpen and overly written re-imagining of everyone's favourite pachyderm-themed parable from Tim Burton lacks any of the heart or understated majesty that made its high-flying predecessor one of the most moving in the studio's illustrious history. Once again telling the story of a baby circus elephant whose oversized ears allow him to take to the skies, 'Dumbo' boasts impressive special effects, stunning production design and a top -rate cast including Colin Farrell, Eva Green and even Burton-stalwarts Danny DeVito and Michael Keaton, reunited for the first time since the divisive 1992 superhero sequel 'Batman Returns'. However, a horrible script, poorly developed characterisations and frequently ugly visuals make this a mammoth-sized misfire totally unworthy of the names of either Dumbo or Disney.
To its credit, the titular wide-eyed elephant looks suitably adorable and there are even a few set pieces, most notably the psychedelic pink elephants sequence, which manage to capture the alchemic magic of a typical Burton project. But these choice moments are very far and few between, haphazardly sandwiched amongst a hodge-podge of repetitive flight scenes and emotionless interactions all filmed against unconvincing and muddy computer generated backgrounds. Even the infamously sad "Baby Mine" scene which was the emotional highlight in the 1941 original is now stripped down to a mere 30 second long cameo, shortened to make room for more aerial montages and uninteresting, ham-fisted conversations about animal welfare clearly written to appeal to ecologically minded audience members.
Allaerial these flaws may be bad but they pale in comparison to the worst and most surprising element of 'Dumbo'; the performances. All of the cast are very talented and as previously mentioned, many have proved their worth working with Burton in the past. However, apart from the always reliable Danny Devito who makes the very best of his underwritten role as a cantankerous ringmaster, the actors and actresses young and old all fail to bring compelling characters to the screen. The fault doesn't lie with the performers themselves but rather the cliche ridden and emotionally barren screenplay by 'Transformers' scribe Ehren Kruger which is as painfully predictable as it is uninspired. Unfortunately, this excuse can't be applied to the usually fabulous Michael Keaton who goes from Batman to badman as the films annoyingly over-the-top villain and delivers one of the absolute worst performances of his entire career.
Allaerial these flaws may be bad but they pale in comparison to the worst and most surprising element of 'Dumbo'; the performances. All of the cast are very talented and as previously mentioned, many have proved their worth working with Burton in the past. However, apart from the always reliable Danny Devito who makes the very best of his underwritten role as a cantankerous ringmaster, the actors and actresses young and old all fail to bring compelling characters to the screen. The fault doesn't lie with the performers themselves but rather the cliche ridden and emotionally barren screenplay by 'Transformers' scribe Ehren Kruger which is as painfully predictable as it is uninspired. Unfortunately, this excuse can't be applied to the usually fabulous Michael Keaton who goes from Batman to badman as the films annoyingly over-the-top villain and delivers one of the absolute worst performances of his entire career.
When compared to 'Maleficent' and the baffingly popular 'Beauty & The Beast', 'Dumbo' may not be the very worst of the recent Disney remakes. However, it is undoubtedly the most egregiously forgettable and with a catalogue of problems as long as an elephants trunk, it stands alongside 'Dark Shadows' and 'Planet Of The Apes' as one of the lowest points in Tim Burton's varied filmography.
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