Dumbo

Name: Dumbo
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Animation, Family
Released: March 29, 2019
Duration: 112 min
Rating: 51
Cast: Alan Arkin, Bern Collaco, Colin Farrell, Danny DeVito, Deobia Oparei

2019

METASCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 55 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Mixed or average reviews based on 244 Ratings

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5.7

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5.7	User Score Mixed or average reviews based on 244 Ratings

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Movie Details & Credits

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures | Release Date: March 29, 2019 | PG

Starring: Alan Arkin, Bern Collaco, Colin Farrell, Danny DeVito, Deobia Oparei, Eva Green, Finley Hobbins, Jo Osmond, Joseph Gatt, Kamil Lemieszewski, Lars Eidinger, Lucy DeVito, Michael Buffer, Michael Keaton, Nico Parker, Roshan Seth, Sandy Martin, Sharon Rooney

Summary: Circus owner Max Medici (Danny DeVito) enlists former star Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) and his children Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughingstock in an already struggling circus. But when they discover that Dumbo can fly, the circus makes an incredibleCircus owner Max Medici (Danny DeVito) enlists former star Holt Farrier (Colin Farrell) and his children Milly (Nico Parker) and Joe (Finley Hobbins) to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughingstock in an already struggling circus. But when they discover that Dumbo can fly, the circus makes an incredible comeback, attracting persuasive entrepreneur V.A. Vandevere (Michael Keaton), who recruits the peculiar pachyderm for his newest, larger-than-life entertainment venture, Dreamland. Dumbo soars to new heights alongside a charming and spectacular aerial artist, Colette Marchant (Eva Green), until Holt learns that beneath its shiny veneer, Dreamland is full of dark secrets. [Walt Disney Pictures]… Expand

Director: Tim Burton

Genre(s): Adventure, Fantasy, Animation, Family

Rating: PG

Runtime: 112 min

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Critic Reviews

Michael O'Sullivan

Mar 27, 2019

The new story is decidedly, deliciously dark, veined with thin layers of Burton’s trademark macabre sensibility, which adds texture and tartness to the inherent charm of the story (at heart, one about the parent-child bond and the possibility of the impossible). Read full review

Richard Roeper

Mar 26, 2019

Fortunately, Dumbo is so awesome and so determined and so brave, and the heartwarming aspects of the story are so impactful, we never stop caring. Read full review

David Sims

Mar 27, 2019

The film is just different enough to stick out amid the studio’s backwards-looking slate, and Burton, for the first time in years, shows he hasn’t lost his love for the idiosyncratic. Read full review

Movie Nation Roger Moore

Mar 26, 2019

Burton has blown up Disney’s ode to magic, misfits finding their gift and a mother’s love into a shiny but bloated, glum affair that feels “BIG EVENT” in scope, and depressingly heartless in execution. Read full review

Alissa Wilkinson

Mar 28, 2019

Dumbo isn’t entirely unpleasant to watch — on the whole, it’s probably Burton’s best since Big Fish, whatever that’s worth — and while the scenes in which the elephant takes flight around the circus tent aren’t exactly magical, they’re pretty fun. Read full review

Gary Thompson

Mar 26, 2019

This movie has nearly as high a body count as "Us"...Is this satire? Homage? More like the desperation of a director who’s supplanted “vision” for emotion. The story leaves Dumbo without meaningful links to the human characters, and the scattered story of Farrell’s cohering family falls flat. Read full review

Joe Morgenstern

Mar 28, 2019

Disney’s new Dumbo is one ponderous pachyderm, a live-action remake of the 1941 animated classic with a grim tone and a dead soul. It’s astounding that Tim Burton and his colleagues could have created such a downer from a long-beloved source of delight. Read full review

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User Reviews

oofmad

Mar 30, 2019

I think that the movie should have a wayyy higher score. There's constantly new plots, and it does a great job at showing both sides of the story, so instead of "surprise, this happened", you become very invested and scared of what might happen. You get to see the movie from alot ofI think that the movie should have a wayyy higher score. There's constantly new plots, and it does a great job at showing both sides of the story, so instead of "surprise, this happened", you become very invested and scared of what might happen. You get to see the movie from alot of perspectives, and you really live into the characters. Changing this and not getting the viewers stuck in one side of the story is really hard, but they did a great job with it.… Expand

7 of 21 users found this helpful714

Voodoo123

Oct 15, 2019

+Excellent cast
+The production value is there on the screen
+Some interesting action set pieces +Far less sombre than the reviews implied -Some very two dimensional villains I went in expecting to not enjoy this and instead came away very impressed. This is Tim Burton firing on all+Excellent cast
+The production value is there on the screen
+Some interesting action set pieces
+Far less sombre than the reviews implied
-Some very two dimensional villains

I went in expecting to not enjoy this and instead came away very impressed. This is Tim Burton firing on all cylinders with all the tools in his belt fully mastered. I expected the visual effects to be exceptional but the writing was the real star. I was pleased by the beating heart of humanity at the centre of the movies story and the combination of this in conjunction with the superb talent (incl exceptional production team) really puts the movie ahead of its own concept. While it goes without saying this wasn't intended for very young children, I'd say this is fine to watch in a family setting. If you are in any way a fan of Burton's back catalogue you owe it to yourself to give Dumbo a chance!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

ahmedaiman1999

Jul 8, 2019

Although I put it on the list of my top 10 most anticipated movies of the year, I can't deny that I was very skeptical about this. From the moment I knew that the original 1941 animated classic would made into a live-action film, I was really worried how it would turn out. I mean, theAlthough I put it on the list of my top 10 most anticipated movies of the year, I can't deny that I was very skeptical about this. From the moment I knew that the original 1941 animated classic would made into a live-action film, I was really worried how it would turn out. I mean, the beloved animated classic has a very simple story that could only work (at least as I thought) in an animation form. The original Dumbo alongside My Neighbor Totoro are the most "innocent" films I've seen in my life. Add to this the fact that it's directed by Tim Burton (one of my favourite filmmakers) whose adaptation of Alice in Wonderland wasn't the best thing it could be (although I liked it).

To my surprise (and a lot of people's, I reckon), Burton's rendering of Dumbo marks Burton's return to his creative, unique vision he's always been known for. I can see Burton here at his brilliant. The eccentric visual panache that distinguish Burton's works are evidently present here and not only for its own sake. Burton's imaginative visuals that leap off the screen, as Dumbo's cuteness do, also add to the storytelling a great deal.

What surprised me even more is when I found that this live-action remake isn't a "remake" per se. This is more like a movie that's inspired by the story of the original. Needless to say, the human characters here are way more richer and well-rounded than they were in the the animated film. Simply because: 1) most of them are new. 2) some of them are technically the protagonists of the story. And I can say that these characters are given a considerable amount of depth.

The villain, played by Michael Keaton, is a bit over-the-top, but I think Keaton put his touch on it, and made me forget about that for the most part. Eva Green is just fine as always. Colin Farrell is just great as always. Danny DeVito is just likable as always. All the actors did a fine job, except for Nico Parker whose acting rubbed me the wrong way as well as her infuriatingly stereotypical character.

Halfway through I thought the movie is pretty good, if certainly not as poignant and warm as the animated classic. At the third act, which is a bit overlong, the story became quite basic. It ends up treading very familiar territory. Even some characters have changed to fit the approach the movie took at the end, such as the villain who became even more over-the-top. For all that I couldn't help being less invested in the story, and the stretched denouement didn't help either. I also found how the things tuned out at the end a tad unsatisfying. And I believe that the moral at the end was slightly on-the-nose. That said, the messages that the movie conveys are well-woven into the fabric of the story. Mostly due to Burton's masterful visual storytelling techniques, including ingenious foreshadowing.

The CGI isn't as good as I expected. I wasn't looking for something like what I saw in Favreau's The Jungle Book, but I hoped the rest of the animals would look as good as the elephants do, Dumbo in particular. Because if there is only one thing Burton did better than Favreau, it would be making the lovely baby elephant Dumbo as realistic as it's agonizingly cute. But unfortunately the CGI in general looks a bit outdated in comparison to what Hollywood has achieved in the recent years.

All in all, I loved this version of Dumbo so much. And I think it's one of the best live-action remakes Disney has made so far. Also, now I can be pretty optimistic about Tim Burton's upcoming projects after I was quite disappointed from Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children.

(7.5/10)… Expand

1 of 2 users found this helpful11

Compi24

Mar 30, 2019

Admittedly, this was one of the few live action Disney remakes I was actually looking forward to. But what we ended up getting in Tim Burton's "Dumbo" is a movie that tries too hard to be different than the original animated effort. Whether it's Michael Keaton's evil carnival tycoonAdmittedly, this was one of the few live action Disney remakes I was actually looking forward to. But what we ended up getting in Tim Burton's "Dumbo" is a movie that tries too hard to be different than the original animated effort. Whether it's Michael Keaton's evil carnival tycoon character, the financial integrity of his suspiciously anachronistic amusement park, or any of the other non-animal beings associated with the title character's plight, there's simply too much going on in here that either diverts too far from the source material, fails to entertain, or does both of these things. In fact, the only elements of this movie that do work are the few that are actually retained from the original. Dumbo is cute, you ache at the fact that he's lost his mother, and it is a joy to see him fly. What exactly are you trying to be, movie? A faithful retelling of a beloved children's tale or a more post-modern examination of the same events? Trying to be both of these at once is unwise, yes? Yet this is the film we're given; a moderately enjoyable yet frequently baffling mishmash of ideas that amounts to what I can easily say is the weakest of Disney's live action remake catalogue.… Expand

2 of 2 users found this helpful20

QuintonKnight

Mar 29, 2019

Disney’s latest live action/CGI remake of a classic film is not good. You don’t get invested in the story at any points throughout the film once or ever and the acting isn’t a highlight. In fact, the acting can used as a complaint. Looks like Disney’s first live action fail.

3 of 4 users found this helpful31

Jortigo

Apr 12, 2019

It's forgettable, I'm sorry, but it's garbage.
The only good thing is the cast.

7 of 11 users found this helpful74

Haydn_C

Apr 4, 2019

This movie is a CGI mess, you can look at the movies wallpaper and you'll see that I'm right. Once again a movie that Disney has made that HAS NOT interested me, trust me when I say I like movies, I gave Spider-Verse a 10 score, but I don't like when a company (especially an entertainmentThis movie is a CGI mess, you can look at the movies wallpaper and you'll see that I'm right. Once again a movie that Disney has made that HAS NOT interested me, trust me when I say I like movies, I gave Spider-Verse a 10 score, but I don't like when a company (especially an entertainment company) is unoriginal. Have a good day everyone.… Expand

5 of 11 users found this helpful56

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