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My Father's Dragon

My Father's Dragon

2022

Nora Twomey

Animation, Voice: Jacob Tremblay, Gaten Matarazzo, Golshifteh Farahani ...

6.2

449

Animation. Fantasy. Adventure. Comedy. Drama Elmer Elevator searches for a captive Dragon on Wild Island and finds much more than he could ever have anticipated.

	Media	Author	Review
		Brandon Zachary CBR	"Although its somewhat simplistic story and basic characters keep it from exceeding the standard set by previous films from the studio, My Father's Dragon is a solid movie for younger audiences and older fans of animation alike."
		David Rooney The Hollywood Reporter	"It lacks the cultural specificity of the Irish animation boutique’s best work, like Wolfwalkers and Song of the Sea, but its retro 2D beauty and lively storytelling should please junior audiences."
		Sarah Milner SlashFilm	"It's an earnest, serious kids movie — the kind of film that the big studios just don't make anymore."
		Donald Clarke Irish Times	"Stuffed with visual elan and powered by good nature, it confirms [Cartoon Saloon's] desire to stretch in hitherto unexplored directions (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		Alistair Ryder The Film Stage	"[It] is another beautifully animated effort from Cartoon Saloon, but the story fails to hit the heights of their previous work—a familiar children’s fable that hasn’t been given the necessary modern makeove"
		Anna Smith Deadline	"This Netflix release has its own distinctive style, and should entertain youngsters who, like Elmer, are both in search of adventure and trying to make sense of the adult world."
		Wendy Ide Screendaily	"A warm, engrossing fantasy which should charm younger audiences (and their parents) (...) Despite the fact that the source material is over 70 yeas old, its themes have a contemporary resonance"
		Guy Lodge Variety	"Winningly sweet-natured, visually transporting adaptation"
		Oli Welsh Polygon	"'My Father's Dragon' is beautiful (...) This is a director and a studio at the forefront of their craft, with the confidence to take a beloved classic and turn it into something bigger —and deeper"
		Benjamin Lee The Guardian	" A gentle film aimed at the younger end of young audiences that will also find the approval of those that much older (...) Rating: ★★★ (out of 5)"
		David Ehrlich IndieWire	"[It] may lack the enchanted splendor of 'Wolfwalkers' or 'The Secret of Kells', but it still towers above most animated fare"
		Steven Scaife Slant	"[It] is kid-friendly but impersonal (...) Rating: ★★ (out of 4)"
		Alexander Harrison Screen Rant	"Beautiful, moving, and sporting a compelling metaphor for parenthood, Twomey's film is heartfelt in the way that Pixar and Ghibli films are (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		Rafael Motamayor IGN	"It may disappoint those waiting for a new movie with the level of brilliance of 'Wolfwalkers' or 'The Breadwinner', but it still entertains with its tale of friendship aided by two great performances"
		Erick Massoto Collider	"[It] abandons a truly heartfelt storyline with complex layers in favor of a generic adventure with vague threats, vague solutions, and predictable outcomes"
		Leigh Monson AV Club	"[It] has its moments, but never quite takes flight"
		Liz Kocan Decider	"[It] is a beautifully animated story, and I have no doubt that there are plenty of kids who will enjoy the tale of adventure and friendship"
		Carlos Aguilar rogerebert.com	"An open-hearted, warm, and affecting art that’s never saccharine but thematically matured in essential drops of wisdom (...) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 4)"
		John Nugent Empire	"Another smash from Cartoon Saloon, at once heartily funny and heartfelt (...) Rating: ★★★★ (out of 5)"
		M.N. Miller Ready Steady Cut	"A warm, vibrant, and emphatically imaginative animated film that’s about the emotions we cannot see underneath the surface (...) Rating: ★★★½ (out of 5)"
		Noel Murray Los Angeles Times	"It's all very fanciful in a fairly simplistic way —aimed mainly at kids under 10. But parents should still connect to Elmer’s problems, which really all comes down to him learning what it's like to be a grown-up"
		Tara Bennett Paste Magazine	"Twomey and her artists have done the magic of staying within the illustration aesthetic of their studio’s signature approach, while expanding that into a more surrealistic and fanciful approach that feels individual and unique"

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