Dissecting Brave

So.... i watched brave last week and i feel compelled this week to dissect it to see what went wrong and what went right.

Spoiler Warning, unless you really want to know what i think about the movie.

The movie starts out like any other (pixar) movie. Establish the main characters, fast forward some years later and introduce the rest of the cast. It feels a little unfortunate at this point in time because i cannot tell what are the names of the important characters, even if they are side characters. The clan leaders are necessary for the progression of the story at this point, so really would like it if we were able to hear the names a little clearer. At this stage, not a big issue, might be just need to turn up the volume a tad.

As the story progresses, we understand that there is conflict between Merida and Eleanor, daughter and mother respectively. We also notice how much clout the queen has, or perhaps it is the other worldly powers women receive when they turn into mothers. whichever the case, a challenge is issued to the suitors from each of the 3 clans to determine who will marry Merida. The characters are all well established at this point, all their quirks are there. Probably the somewhat expected part was that Merida would win the challenge so that she could defy her mother's will. The manner is of course stylish and well executed.

Conflict between the clans and mother and daughter ensue with Fergus doing what he does best, making more of it by joining in even when he's supposed to diffuse it. Let's just flash forward to the part after Merida runs away and reaches the witch who for all intents purposes functions like Merida's moral compass. The witch with a seeming bear fetish is quite refreshing after Tangled's portrayal of the classic stepmother in all her ugliness. Like one of the witches from Hayao Miyazaki films but with more appealing head proportions. Pomp and witchery create a magical cake thingy which at first, doesn't look like a cake thingy; i blame the tongs used to bring it out from the cauldron. It genuinely does look like a superheated metal landmine.

Flash forwards to after Merida gets her mum to eat the cake thingy and Eleanor changes into a bear. This part here kind of bugs me a tad. i understand the need for there to be some sort of contrast with Eleanor's stuffy, uppity and decidedly chaffing prim and proper attitude but i think bears are a little overused. We've had Kung Fu Panda 1 and 2, Over the hedge and Brother Bear 1 and 2 just to name a few. Back to the Brave; so the brothers for some reason recognize their mother and are able to help smuggle her out of the castle. So, now Merida and Eleanor are forced to find a way to cure Eleanor. Conveniently, the witch has disappeared and leaves a relatively cryptic clue that most of us are able to decipher if we are savvy enough. Merida doesn't know what to do and so tosses everything into the cauldron. This part i liked. the frustration and desperation come out very nicely here. However, then comes the part i don't like.

Now that she is a bear, Eleanor must learn to adapt. She humorously attempts to. i think the gag here went off a tangent that i would have done personally in an animation project of my own, this means the gag doesn't work because of the exaggeration going on. That mama bear Eleanor set the table as a bear is already humorous enough, it went too far with her trying to use a fork and 'knife'. Saving grace was the poison berries and dirty water. The training of Eleanor begins with her trying to catch a fish. She fails. Merida shows her mother that her skills in the wilderness are, in fact quite useful.

After frolicking and the danger of being a bear are shown, Merida and Eleanor bear make their way to some destroyed ruins and meet Marduk the bigger, badder bear for the second time in the entire movie. This is the part that made me realize something is amiss. Tapestry. What does it have anything to do with bonds? There is either some sort of folklore i am unaware of or the producers made another error in judgement. Eleanor and Merida decide they must get back into the castle to fix the tapestry that Merida destroyed earlier on. And so, they go back.

the 3 boys have now turned into little bearlets aren't they cute? They are still little terrors regardless. This part is actually very important because this shows the reason Eleanor wants Merida to act like a princess, coupled along with the destroyed castle from before. This part is executed brilliantly. Actually, the entire castle part here is done quite well. All the characters behave as they should.... the funny part seems to be that Fergus did not notice his wife's absence for an entire day until he finally entered his room to discover the damage done by Eleanor getting used to her new frame. This is the only thing marring an otherwise brilliant scene overall.

Fergus locks Merida up for her own safety and again, the 3 boys prove to be quite useful in getting her out. Now, we reach the grand finale. Tapestry is stitched up, Merida rushes to help her mother who is being hunted by her own father and clansmen. Wisps leading her on, she arrives just in time and then... Marduk appears. Not sure what to say here really. i cannot figure out what's wrong with this part on a fundamental level. Marduk has to appear because he is the main antagonist. If he doesn't appear, Fergus will gut his own wife. Merida would not have had a satisfactory ending at all and the 3 boys would still be bears, not that it changes anything. It just seems so convenient for him to appear at the time... perhaps it is the lack of Marduk skulking around like when he did it the first time in the beginning of the movie, a palpable aura of fear.

They defeat Marduk, Merida and Eleanor come to terms and Fergus finally figures out Merida is not a crack pot after all. The clans leave satisfied. Happy ending, the end.

Now, i have listed several faults in the movie but chief among them is the use of wisps, the blue and very literal forest GPS device. i would rather they not have used the wisps in this manner, its very... deus ex machina. Characters get lost, a trail of blue little guys appear. The reason they appear is because of fate, supposedly. Not so much fun for the audience as we can roughly guess where the wisps will lead us. I have criticized much and now it is only fair i give a list of suggestions to maybe fix the thing.

Eleanor turning into a bear. Of all the creatures in Scotland to be used...a mother bear? Doesn't really suit Eleanor i think. I would rather she turned into a fox or a wolf perhaps. Eleanor doesn't look good stompy at all. She can rush about like a wolf or fox since those would be closer to her personality and yet still be brutish enough as an animal. Of course, it means Merida would have to teach her mother hunting instead of fishing, not a big problem at any rate. The cake that transforms Eleanor originally should not have glowed when it came out from the cauldron, or since its magic, maybe it should have floated out.

one thing i would really like to know early on. the names of the clan leaders and the 3 brothers. personally, i think its an audio issue. but if others agree with me that they didn't get to hear the names. then it's not an audio issue. Regards to the problem about the tapestry, i don't think Merida is that dense when she hears the words: "mend the bonds". of course, sewing up the cloth was probably a good idea considering Eleanor would be naked when she transforms back. Merida might have probably come to that conclusion early on when she hears it the first time, or Eleanor even. If they understood what it meant, were they both denying that their bond is broken? i doubt that is the case. if they knew, they would have gelled back together as mother and daughter proper from that moment on.

Not the entire film is bad, i liked it a lot actually considering that there has been a spate of pretty not so good movies out there as of late. The world they created for Merida is truly wonderful. its a place i think i would be quite at home with considering they drink and fight a lot; also, bagpipes. the gags with the 3 kids and the cakes are plenty funny and quite original, which is better because they hardly speak. All the characters are very well fleshed out including Marduk though his motives despite being explained as greedy and selfish, remain cloudy in my opinion. Out of all the characters, i especially liked Fergus. there's a man who knows how to raise children and have fun doing it at the same time. i would give the film a 6.5 out of 10.

doubts and uncertainty

While I was having a late lunch at Somerset 313, I chanced upon a Mr. S.C. who happened to be the partner of the Japanese restaurant I was eating at. Quick note about the place first. It's called Tokyo Pasta Mario, nice Japanese fusion food and of course curry at a fairly reasonable price. http://www.hungrygowhere.com/singapore/Tokyo_Pasta_Mario__313_Somerset_/

But, that's besides the point. Talking to him I realized he had at one point in time owned an animation company which was based in Manila, Philippines. Of course, he had to sell it off when he started incurring losses. Which brings us back onto point. The animation industry in Singapore may not do as well as the government thinks it will. In Mr. S.C.'s experience, he has had to bring in jobs from overseas, mainly from America's Hollywood. Local South East Asian jobs were mostly for advertising companies looking for local animation houses. Those advertising firms he charged them for quite a large fee seeing that he had a slight niche market and monopoly in terms of animation industry in SEA, but that was about 10 years ago now. He had a slight edge over the competition due to his company dabbling in early 3d software.

He fondly recalls having worked on some Disney titles though I'm not sure which ones exactly. He also recalls the labour force he had under him. According to him, while Philippine artists are in fact brilliant, their poor living standards meant that their weekly salary tends to go missing before the week is up. Sadly, his studio began to make losses so he had to sell the company to an Indian company which apparently has a larger compound space than LASALLE in Singapore.... well, it is India I suppose.

In our discussion it was noted that the animation industry in Singapore may not be as successful as many may think it will be. Indeed, Mr. S.C. who at one point in time was offered a 50% subsidy to help create a Mr. Kiasu animated film by the Singapore government can attest to the growth of the industry. At least from a business perspective. The argument from his side is that Singapore on its own is too small to have large growth in animation. This may also stem from the fact that the mentality in the country regarding animation is to not hold it in high regard. But I digress, the animation industry in Singapore has many hurdles to overcome despite government assistance.

Personally, my feeling about the animation industry in Singapore is well..... uncertain. On one hand, you have the large animation houses such as Lucas Arts and its cohort, Double Negative studios and maybe to a degree Ubisoft....which does require animation in their games. On the other hand, you have rather apprehensive parents and a slightly myopic society who regard animation as something useless and unable to produce money. This creates a rather unusual situation in which people can find themselves questioning whether it will be worthwhile to pursue a career in animation in Singapore.

As a Malaysian in Singapore or any other foreigner in Singapore for that matter, the situation does tend to get worse. Singapore in its zeal to acquire manpower has now brought in too many of us foreigners and risk the anger of their citizens. To be fair though, we are technically encroaching on an already small island and must share income with the locals. Already the government is taking certain subtle steps to reduce and improve the quality of manpower coming into Singapore, meaning that only the best will be employed and even then that might be a large maybe. Have we come into Singapore too late? I certainly hope not.

With Mr. S.C.'s advise fresh in mind, I shall now share it with you. Finish up your studies and bonds in Singapore and search for your fortunes abroad. Most of us are still under 30 or just about there, so it might not be such a bad idea to pack up and relocate elsewhere such as New York or Canada. As for the situation for us in Singapore, I currently doubt that it will improve tremendously over a short period of time, but there will be improvement. The one thing that helps me look forward is the fact that Singapore has in fact opened itself to all sorts of animation companies and recently game companies as well. So, there is that for us foreign animators in this little red speck.

Author's note:

Mr. S.C. is a relatively excitable but generally polite and friendly gentleman in his 50's who is a partner of the Tokyo Mario Pasta in Somerset 313's 5^th floor in Food Republic. He seems to know much about business and as such, the comments he made regarding the animation industry maybe more towards it as a business venture and not in general. In my opinion anyway, at least until I can get it from himself.

Cheers comrades.