The Land Before Time (1988): Dir: Don Bluth / Voices: Gabriel Damon, Candace Hutson, Will Ryan, Judith Barsi, Helen Shaver: To a child this animation may strike an adventurous cord, but to an adult it is just a bunch of voice actors whining for ninety minutes. The plot regards a few baby dinosaurs who must travel together to find that sacred land told to them by their parents. After a violent earthquake these kids became separated from their parents. Now they must band together and try to avoid the jaws of the lethal T-Rex. The plot concept has appeal but it wears thin once it becomes a walking road movie. We know where the story is heading but the biggest headache are the characters themselves. There is not one dinosaur here that rises above cardboard level. Littlefoot the brontosaurus seems to be the leader but his arguments with the stubborn Cera the triceratops get really annoying after a certain point. Ducky is a saurolophus, Petrie is the timid pteranodon, and spike is the stegosaurus who says nothing because every other character sounds enough like a moron for him to chime in. don The voice talents are no saving grace in this department either since everyone sounds like an idiot. Bluth directs and the animation is on par with most Disney animations but this is no Fantasia. It contains a strong friendship theme within a story that should be extinct from memory fast. Score: 5 / 10
Review of The Land Before Time
