[wp-review id=”70468″]

In 1977, 5-year old Pete was on a trip with his parents around the town of Millville.   Suddenly, a deer darts out in front of their car, causing it to crash.  Pete is the only survivor and he begins to hear howls from a pack of wolves.  He runs into the woods and becomes surround when suddenly a large, green dragon protects him so Pete names him Elliot after a puppy in his favorite book.  Fast-forward 6 years later and the two are inseparable.  Grace is a ranger and her boyfriend is a lumberjack.  He works for a logging company that is cutting back the forest and when he brings his daughter to the site, she spots Pete and chases him into the woods.  During the chase, both Natalie and Pete get hurt but he is knocked unconscious and needs a hospital.

PETE’S DRAGON is a remake of Disney’s 1977 classic of the same name and is written & directed by David Lowery.  His background is in Indie films and has made a tight story into an epic adventure. He has made the characters easy to connect with and cast them perfectly to play out the story.  Oakes Fegley, who plays Pete, plays the role in an excellent and emotional way.  He makes it believable that this dragon is his best friend.  

This is arguably one of the best of the Disney remakes.  They took the original idea of a boy and his dragon friend and built upon that for a more modern time. They also dropped a lot of the slapstick humor that might not have done as well with todays audiences.  I think these changes were necessary and a good move by Disney.  Going with the relative newcomer, David Lowery, was also a smart move.

Cast
Bryce Dallas Howard – Grace Meacham
Oakes Fegley – Pete
Wes Bentley – Jack
Karl Urban – Gavin
Oona Laurence – Natalie
Robert Redford – Mr. Meacham
Isiah Whitlock Jr. – Sheriff Gene Dentler
Jim McLarty – Ranger Wentworth
Ian Harcourt – Deputy West
Steve Barr – Deputy Smalls
John Kassir – the voice of the Dragon,  Elliot

VIDEO QUALITY:

The film is a 1080p AVC presentation.  Even in the scenes in broad daylight, the movie is dark.  That being said, the greens go from bright to vibrant at times.  The best example is when Eliot’s fur changes hues after Grace pets him.  Other colorings such as skin tones are natural and warm. The details are sharp and stand out incredibly with there rarely being complaints of soft images.  Again, the filmmakers and artists spent a lot of time on Elliot.  You are able to see the strands of fur, textures, and intricacies in his design.  There was a little noise in the darker scenes but never too much to distract from the film.

AUDIO QUALITY:

The audio is a lossless DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 mix.  The music is one of the biggest standouts in the mix with rich folk music and the score.  The acoustic guitar is heard during the adventure and some of the more emotional scenes.  The score also has swells where it becomes a little louder but it is always clear.  The sound effects are also reproduced well and the unique sounds that have been created for Elliot feel realistic.  Overall the sound is a bit on the quiet side, making some of the ambient sounds you would normally hear in the forest get lost.  

SUPPLEMENTS & PACKAGING

-Audio Commentary: Director/Writer David Lowery, Writer Toby Halbrooks, and Actors Oakes Fegley & Oona Laurence.

-Notes to Self: A Director’s Diary: This is a look at the production of the film from Writer/Director David Lowery’s point of view.

-Making Magic: This featurette looks at the filmmakers creating Elliot for screen.

-“Disappearing” Moments: These are some deleted and extended scenes.

-Music Video: “Nobody Knows” by The Lumineers.

-Music Video: “Something Wild” by Lindsey Stirling Featuring Andrew McMahon

-Welcome to New Zealand: This quick featurette has some of the cast talking about filming on loc
-Bloopers

Disc Details
2-disc set w/ 1 Blu-ray and 1 DVD
Digital copy

Running Time
103 mins

Edition Ratings
Rated PG

Region Coding
Region Free

Video Resolution
1080p AVC MPEG-4
Aspect ratio: 2.40:1

Audio Mixes
English DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1
French Dolby Digital 5.1
Spanish Dolby Digital 5.1
Portuguese Dolby Digital 5.1

Subtitles
English SDH
French
Portuguese
Spanish

THE BOTTOM LINE:

I’m sure by now you’ve figured out that I enjoyed this film.  From the dragon’s design to the story to the characters, this has been a fun and entertaining experience.  The release has near perfect video transfer and an excellent audio mix.  I would’ve liked to see more with the extras but the ones that are there are really good.  I highly recommend picking up this film, especially if you’re a family, a fan of the original or just really like the direction that Disney has been going with their films lately.