PETE’S DRAGON
Director: David Lowery
Cast: Oakes Fegley, Bryce Dallas Howard, Robert Redford, Oona Laurence, Wes Bentley, Karl Urban, Isiah Whitlock Jr
Rating: (PG)
Five stars (out of five)
This movie’s CGI version of a green and furry dragon (Elliot) is so adorable that you wish that you had the space to put one up.
When an accident leaves a young defenceless Pete (Oakes Fegley) alone in the forest the appearance of an enormous dragon does not fill you with confidence, but Elliot quickly reveals himself to be something of a softy and as much in need of a companion as Pete is.
For six joyful years they romp and play through the forest and the scenes with a 9-year-old boy and a 20ft-long dragon romping are some of the best CGI you will ever see.
However, no matter how large the forest, trees are money and men arriving to cut them down are only a matter of time.
But fear not, a pretty forestry warden called Grace (Bryce Dallas Howard) has the welfare of the forest and all the creatures that dwell there at heart.
You can tell by the way I am writing this that the storyline is full of cliches and totally predictable, but possibly for that very reason it works.
Grace, for all her belief that she knows this forest like the back of her hand, manages to miss Pete and Elliot but her stepdaughter Natalie (Oona Laurence) instantly flushes Pete out.
Once Pete spends time with a human family, he realises that he and Elliot are going to have to let each other go.
- Christine Powley
