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Writer's pictureKaveh Jalinous

Ferdinand (2017): Film Review




Throughout the recent years, animated movies have gone up and down on some sort of roller coaster. They have been releasing like rapid fire, and viewers are slammed with at least one of them every month. But, it feels like the sheer volume of films has led to the loss of creativity and originality, something animated movies need to be good. Such examples of this loss of creativity and originality lies in The Emoji Movie, one of the worst movies of 2017. Yet another example is Cars 3, one of the worst movies from Disney and Pixar. Point is, a lot of terrible animated movies have come out this year. Enter: Coco. Fresh, vibrant, and memorable, Coco is everything a great animated movie, and fantastic movie, needs to be. So, when I decided to catch Ferdinand, I didn't have very high expectations. How could any animated movie compare to the last one I saw, a movie with so much emotion it brought tears to my eyes? Although Ferdinand has its moments, and loads of originality and humor, the film just has patches of missing elements, which affect the film's direction in a big way. The film tells the story of Ferdinand (John Cena), a bull living in peace in the mountains of Spain. Taken against his will, he is brought to a bull-fighting training house, where he meets a calming goat (Kate McKinnon). Together, they meet new bulls, go through events, and discover that being a bull isn't just about fighting. I like Ferdinand, I really do, but there are somethings that truly ruin its image. For example, in the middle of the movie, there is a random scene of dancing between bulls and horses, which has nothing to do with the plot and is completely uncalled for. Such is a trend in the movie, random elements that don't need to be there. The film wastes loads of time in unnecessary exposition, and starts to bore. But, the film manages to be entertaining, heartwarming, and even a little emotional, which is more than enough for a 2017 animated movie to be decent. Not to be great, though. John Cena does a great job as the voice of Ferdinand, and fits into the role perfectly. Perhaps my favorite part, and one of the main reasons I liked the movie, was the message it was portraying. Stereotypes are just ideas, it shouldn't control your life or how people see you. Ferdinand was a bull, and a stereotype was that he was a fighter. Instead, he was not a fighter at all. The message Ferdinand presents is a very important one, a message highly needed in 2017. And that's what makes Ferdinand a mild success, and an animated film to remember.

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