Tuesday 18 February 2014

Today's Review: Tinker Bell And The Pirate Fairy


The Tinker Bell movie series is one that I'm sure quite a few people aren't aware of. The first three were direct to DVD releases, with only the last two being released theatrically. But the kids and I have been watching since the beginning, and while the idea of an entire movie series based on the origin story of Tinker Bell doesn't sound all that good on paper, each instalment has actually managed to be decently entertaining. So by chucking some pirate action into the fifth movie, what could go wrong?

The Pirate Fairy follows Tinker Bell and her friends as they set out to find Zarina, a fairy outcast who has stolen the all important blue pixie dust and taken it back to her band of wayward pirates. Will Tinker Bell get the dust back in time? Will the pirates' devious plan come to fruition? Will Disney ever stop milking the cash cow and show us how Tink ended up with Peter Pan? Well, the last question remains to be seen, but for the first two, watch the movie.

I must say that I've enjoyed a few of the Tinker Bell movies a lot more than I was expecting, and this one was no exception. The pirate storyline seemed a bit tacked on at first, but it ends up being a very decent tie in to the Peter Pan universe as a whole, with a lot of nods to the classic film that probably only the adults will catch. This movie is also different in that Tink is not so alone in her adventures as she was before. All of her friends tag along for the ride, whereas before they only seemed like guest stars who stayed behind once the meat of the story begins. Not only do they all set out together, but their powers get switched up fairly early on, which leads to some interesting antics and some slapstick that the kids will find amusing. 

It's not an instant classic though. Sure, it's good, but it's certainly not polished enough to be on par with the Disney Classics. The plot is fairly simplistic and predictable, the acting is good, not great. The movie is quite short too, on par with the other Tinker Bells, but not really enough to justify paying for a full price cinema ticket. However, what is packed into the short run time is certainly entertaining. It's not going to be the movie of the year, hell, not even movie of the week (I'm looking at you Lego Movie). But it's a good time for kids that parents will be able to watch without falling asleep, and isn't that just what we want in half term?

My rating: 4/5

No comments:

Post a Comment