Finding Nemo (2003)

Director: Andrew Stanton
Story: Andrew Stanton
Cast: Albert Brooks, Ellen DeGeneres, Alexander Gould, Willem Dafoe
Music: Thomas Newman
Time: 100 minutes
Bottom-line: With great animation, excellent vocal work, and a heart-warming, funny and adventurous story, Finding Nemo is, and will be, a classic.

  One of the most entertaining animated films, Finding Nemo wins the admiration of all audiences: children, teenagers and adults alike. Filled with good dialogues and memorable characters and many comic incidents, this film is a joy ride all the way.  

Finding Nemo takes place almost entirely underwater, except for some 10-15 minutes. It is about a clownfish, Nemo (Gould), born to Marlin (Brooks) and Coral, who live in the Great Barrier Reef. In the beginning of the film, Coral and all the other eggs are eaten by a shark, but one egg is left behind. Marlin names it Nemo. The film cuts to Nemo’s first day at school. Marlin embarrasses Nemo by creating a scene to make sure Nemo is all right, in front of his friends in the first day of school. An angered Nemo disobeys his father and goes after a boat. En route, he is captured by two scuba divers, and before Marlin can give chase, Nemo is hauled into their boat. Before leaving, one diver accidentally knocks off his mask into the water, which Marlin finds later. Marlin, in search of the boat, discovers a friend in Dory (DeGeneres), a regal blue tang, with short-term memory loss. Along with Dory, Marlin attempts to find his lost son, with the help of the address written in the diver’s mask. The rest of the film is the adventure of Marlin and Dory as they travel past all underwater dangers to find Nemo.
  Meanwhile, Nemo is transferred to an aquarium of an Australian dentist. Nemo finds many friends there: Gill (Dafoe), Bloat, Peach and other fishes. Over the next few days, Nemo plans his own escape back into the ocean, with help from the other fishes.   

Nemo

Dory (left) and Marlin

Other friends of Nemo

Andrew Stanton has done a fantastic job… he has managed to bring out a father-son relationship in a beautiful way in an animated film. The animation is terrific: the expressions in the faces of the fishes are very authentic. The other underwater objects and locations have been created beautifully. The vocal artists deserve huge praise. They have modulated their voice well, spoken with emotion.

Other than love, this film also displays hope. The hope shown by Marlin, while traveling hundreds of miles with Dory is inspiring. Nemo also shows hope while trying to escape from the aquarium back into the ocean. This film is also, in a way, educational. Children and adults get to know about the different types of fish in the ocean, as well as things under the ocean. 

There are several comic scenes and lots of funny dialogues. Dory’s dialogues, including several lines she mutters in her sleep, are funny, mainly because of her short term memory loss. The shark Bruce, as well as the other fishes along the way, creates some comic sequences. Most of the scenes from the dentist’s house are funny, including the lines of the fishes in the aquarium.

Bruce the shark

With breathtaking animation, great vocal work, good dialogues and a heart-warming, hope-giving story, Finding Nemo is an exceptional movie. Marlin’s and Nemo’s love for each other, seen throughout the film, will have an effect on you. This film definitely needs to be watched by any movie fan. Join Marlin and Dory as they take you on an underwater adventure, in the task of finding Nemo.

My Rating: 5/5
Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 99%