There were ominous rumours before Finding Nemo swam to the surface. Nefarious whispers suggested it was a dead fish, waiting to flop into cinemas, gasping for appreciation but doomed only to stink up Pixar's reputation.
Despite all the murmurings, however, the opposite was true. Here was a whale of a tale that became the biggest animated hit of all time. It's easy to see why. In plumbing the depths of his concept - clownfish Nemo (Alexander Gould) is nabbed by a diver, forcing his neurotic father Marlin (Albert Brooks) on a frantic search. - Andrew Stanton and his Pixar crew have applied their craftsmanship to a film that pushes Toy Story 2 for top spot.
Naturally, we've now come to expect a certain level of quality from the studio, but Nemo really pushes the boundaries. For starters, the animators have excelled themselves with the visuals, creating a dense, sparkling and eye-bulgingly beautiful ocean world, a seascape which shifts subtly (bright coral reefs, foreboding inky depths, murky harbour water) as the characters head out on their epic journey.
The canny characterisation, meanwhile, makes use of the voice casts' particular talents, channelling Brooks' worrier into a sympathetic lead and finding the perfect outlet for Ellen DeGeneres' kooky optimist. It helps that the supporting players are all quality thesps enjoying their chance to let loose: Willem Dafoe as the brooding leader of the fish tank where Nemo is held captive; Geoffrey Rush as Nigel the wayward pelican; plus Barry `Dame Edna' Humphries' popcorn-spraying turn as the hilarious vegetarian shark Bruce.
Pixar has also done its usual job of squeezing in highbrow and lowbrow film references, in-jokes and humour, while never forgetting to tend to the movie's emotional core. No wonder it made our top three in last issue's Film Of The Year poll.
DVD Extras:
The usual bang-up Pixar job, loading the disc with just about every extra fans could fish for. Stanton, co-director Lee Unkrich and co-writer Bob Peterson gather for a lively gab-track that outlines the movie from concept to completion, throwing in anecdotes amid the info and providing a sense of the pressure everyone was under to deliver another winner. Those chasing even more can switch on the visual commentary, which adds to the audio with branching documentaries at various points, from how the anemones were created to what a real Aussie accent sounds like compared to the scratch-track Yank efforts. There's no shortage of personality, that's for sure.The same can be said for the rest of the extras, the design galleries boasting an optional talk-through from the chatty art team and the Making Nemo doc also featuring plenty of clowning around. It's pretty exhaustive stuff, Stanton and co having a video team present throughout the production. And that's just disc one. Slip in spinner two and we're in the kiddie pool, with a reef exploration doc, encyclopedia, games and a studio tour that's annoyingly focused on Nemo voice Alexander Gould. The kid may be able to act, but he sure as hell can't react in any normal fashion, making this the only flip-past feature on the discs. Two more niggles stop Nemo's bonus package from getting the full five stars: one, there isn't any real discussion about how the film had to be retooled midway, the makers transforming it from its darkly comic roots to the current family-pleasing epic; and two, those with low tolerance for slightly smug, self-satisfied backslapping might want to skip the intros. That said, who can really blame the team for wanting to show off a little? Hell, they've earned it. Again.
