Disney•Pixar’s “Finding Dory,” Swims Home In Time For The Holidays!

Disclosure:  Disney provided me with a product to facilitate this post.  The words and opinions expressed in this review are strictly of my own.

Just in time for the holidays, this summer’s blockbuster hit Disney•Pixar’s Finding Dory swims home on Digital HD and Blu-ray!  The Blu-ray Combo Pack hit retail shelves yesterday and is jam packed with over two hours of immersive bonus features, including a theatrical short (Piper), fun cool facts about the creatures, plenty of deleted scenes, and more!

Bonus features include*:

Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray & Digital HD:

• Theatrical Short: “Piper” – A hungry sandpiper hatchling ventures from her nest for the first time to dig for food by the shoreline. The only problem is that the food is buried beneath the sand where scary waves roll up onto the shore.
• Marine Life Interviews (All-New Mini Short) – Meet the inhabitants of the Marine Life Institute as they remember our favorite blue tang.
• The Octopus That Nearly Broke Pixar – Pixar’s “Team Hank” unravels the challenges, frustrations, and rewards of bringing to life the studio’s crankiest and most technically complicated character ever.
• What Were We Talking About? – This piece showcases the complex routes Dory’s story took as the filmmakers worked to construct a comprehensive narrative involving a main character with short-term memory loss.
• Casual Carpool – What’s it like to commute with the voices of Marlin, Charlie, Bailey and Hank? Join “Finding Dory” writer/director Andrew Stanton as he drives Albert Brooks, Eugene Levy, Ty Burrell and Ed O’Neill to work.
• Animation & Acting – How do you create a connection between a human audience and a fish? This behind-the-scenes look behind the curtain examines the process of constructing believable performances through a unique collaboration between the director, voice actors and animators.
• Creature Features – The cast of “Finding Dory” share cool facts about the creatures they voice in the film.
• Deep in the Kelp – Disney Channel’s Jenna Ortega guides us on a research trip to the Monterey Bay Aquarium to show how far the “Finding Dory” crew went to make Dory’s world feel real.
• Skating & Sketching with Jason Deamer – “Finding Dory” character art director Jason Deamer talks about how he got to Pixar, how he draws the characters in the film, and how falling off a skateboard teaches you lessons you can use in art and life.
• Dory’s Theme – A spirited discussion among the composer, music editor and director of “Finding Dory” about the musical elements that shape Dory’s quirky and joyful theme.
• Rough Day on the Reef – Sometimes computers make mistakes. Here you’ll see some of the funny, creepy and just plain bizarre footage the crew encountered while making “Finding Dory.”
• Commentary – Director Andrew Stanton, co-director Angus MacLane and producer Lindsey Collins deliver their personal perspective on “Finding Dory.”
• Deleted Scenes (introduced by director Andrew Stanton)
  • Losing Nemo – While watching the stingray migration, Dory starts to follow two fish that remind her of her parents, leaving Nemo all alone.
  • Little Tension in Clown Town – In this alternate version of the film, Dory tries to “follow her fins” to her parents, but ends up in a strange place with even stranger fish fashion.
  • Dory Dumped – In this early version of the story, Dory’s parents had short-term memory loss as well.
  • Sleep Swimming – Dory begins to talk and swim in her sleep, revealing what seem to be clues to her past.
  • Meeting Hank – Wandering the Marine Life Institute’s elaborate pipe system, Dory happens upon the abode of Hank the cranky octopus.
  • The Pig – Frantically navigating the pipes of the Marine Life Institute in search of her parents, Dory crosses paths with a terrifying cleaning device.
  • Starting Over – Director Andrew Stanton presents four different versions of the movie’s opening scene to illustrate the filmmakers’ search for the best way to introduce Dory’s backstory and to connect this new film to “Finding Nemo.”
  • Tank Gang (Digital exclusive) – After a close encounter with a squid leaves them separated from Dory, Marlin and Nemo unexpectedly meet up with the Tank Gang from “Finding Nemo,” who make it their mission to get to the Marine Life Institute … by any means necessary.
  • Hidden Seacrets of Finding Dory (Digital exclusive) – Take a deep dive to catch secret Easter Eggs throughout the movie.  And just like Hank, they’re hidden in plain sight.

DVD:

• Theatrical Short: Piper & Commentary

Finding Dory Synopsis

From the Academy Award®–winning creators of Disney•Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” (Best Animated Feature, 2003) comes an epic undersea adventure filled with imagination, humor and heart. When Dory, the forgetful blue tang (Ellen DeGeneres), suddenly remembers she has a family who may be looking for her, she, Marlin (Albert Brooks) and Nemo (Hayden Rolence) take off on a life-changing quest to find them … with help from Hank, a cantankerous octopus; Bailey, a beluga whale who’s convinced his biological sonar skills are on the fritz; and Destiny, a nearsighted whale shark. Bring home the movie overflowing with unforgettable characters, dazzling animation and gallons of bonus extras.

Were you worried about Dory?

Where you worried about your favorite bright blue tang?  As fans know, Dory suffers from short-term memory loss.  Dory’s disability doesn’t change her sunny personality, but what happens if she got lost again?  This was director Andrew Stanton’s concerns and the reason for the new chapter after 13 years of the original film Finding Nemo.

Living Aquariums

One of the best bonus features on the DVD is the Living Aquariums!  The Sea Grass, Open Ocean, Stingrays, and Swim To The Surface are beautiful and peaceful.  Set them on your television, sit back, and let the stunning animation scenes of ocean life relax and entertain you.

FUN FACTS By the Numbers

289,240,840 key animation frames were created for the film. A key animation frame defines pivotal points of motion in a sequence.

25,118,559 likes on Facebook for Dory (the most of any Disney or Pixar character).

103,639 total storyboards were delivered to editorial (49,651 were delivered for “Toy Story 3”).

26,705 individual pieces of coral were placed in six sets by the sets dressing team.

16,091 fish are swimming in the Open Ocean exhibit at the Marine Life Institute.

11,041 rigging prims were created just for Hank’s simulation (the average character requires around 20).

5,000 stingrays take part in the stingray migration.

1,108 fish are in quarantine at the Marine Life Institute.

746 visitors are hanging out at the Marine Life Institute.

350 suckers are found on Hank: 50 suckers on each of his seven arms.

319 tendrils were added to each sea anemone in the ocean.

118 weeks were required of the team of technical directors who were responsible for building and articulating Hank.

83 employees of the Marine Life Institute appear in the film.

51 minutes of the film include crowds characters (which is more than double that of an average Pixar film).

45 active stalks were added to each section of kelp in the underwater kelp forest outside of the Marine Life Institute.

17 is the date in June of 2016 that “Finding Dory” opens in U.S. theaters.

22 weeks were spent shading Hank to give him extra texture and color, as well as making it possible for him to camouflage himself. (An average character takes less than eight weeks.)

13 years have passed since “Finding Nemo” opened.

4 Oscar® nominations went to “Finding Nemo.” The film won best animated feature—it was the first Pixar movie to win the award.

HIDDEN GEMS

NOSTALGIC WHEELS – The truck that is featured late in the movie features a logo from the 1986 short “Luxo, Jr.” produced by Pixar and directed by John Lasseter. The short’s success helped launch the studio, and the image of the desk lamp appears in Pixar’s iconic logo today.

• The license plate on the truck sports A113, which is reminiscent of the CalArts classroom for first-year graphic design and character animation where many of the artists and animators at Pixar began to build their craft.
• Sets Art Director Don Shank’s name can be seen in the truck’s grill.

TAG IT – The tags donned by the lazy sea lions snoozing outside the Marine Life Institute together bear the iconic A113. While Rudder’s tag reads A1, Fluke’s says 13.

FIELD TRIP – Riley from 2015’s “Inside Out” appears in a group of kids touring the Marine Life Institute. She is clearly featured in a frame with Dory.

MAP IT – The registration number for the zodiac boat that picks up Dory in the bay outside the Marine Life Institute is PA1200, which represents Pixar’s address: 1200 Park Avenue.

Overflowing with Heartwarming Animation

If you are looking for a holiday movie to entertain your family, Finding Dory is a no-brainer!  The film is overflowing with heartwarming scenes and characters that are truly unforgettable.

Old friends, such as Marlin, Nemo, Crush, Squirt, and Mr. Ray are back again in this adventure to help Dory’s find her way back home to her parent.

During her journey, Dory meets new friends at the Marine Life Institute including Hank, an octopus looking for a peaceful life of solitude; Destiny, a whale shark who has poor eyesight and speaks whale too; Bailey, the Marine Life Institute’s resident beluga whale who believes his biological sonar skills are on the fritz; Becky, the kooky loon who takes a liking to Marlin; Fluke and Rudder, a pair of lazy sea lions and some fuzzy faced otters that you will fall in love with!

Additionally, fans get a look at young tiny Dory and her life with her parents before she got lost.

I liked Finding Nemo, but loved Finding Dory!  The movie tugs on your heartstrings and leaves a warm fuzzy feeling inside!  It is one of the best animated films I have ever seen!

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