I was lucky enough to be invited to an early screening of Brave last night (this time it was actually a screening and not some star-studded, business-casual-means-wear-a-ball-gown premiere) and I was a little bummed that the time and place of the screening would make it impossible for me to bring Kyle. We've only taken him to one in-theater movie before, and he did pretty well. I thought it'd be fun to take him to another. Well, small miracles that I ended up inviting Natalie instead.
We saw the 3-D version, which I didn't realize before showing up. I was a little disappointed since 3-D isn't really my thing, but this was the first 3-D movie I think I enjoyed more than I would have otherwise. It was visually spectacular and the VisitScotland marketing campaign is pretty genius because that's exactly what I took from the movie: I need to get to Scotland ASAP.
The story itself -- outside of the breathtaking LOOK of it -- was a little disappointing. The plot wasn't at all what I was expecting. I thought it would be a coming-of-age adventure where this young girl is tested either by her circumstances or ambitions or something along those lines. It started that way, and I thought I knew where it was going until BAM, sharp (and strange) turn in an entirely different direction. I just couldn't really invest IN the story in a big-picture way, and it disappointed me that such a beautiful film wasn't matched by a beautiful story.
I feel I should also say, as the parent of a three year old, I wouldn't take Kyle to see it. He hasn't seen ads for it -- I don't think we watch much live television, only reason -- so he's not asking to go (makes my decision easy) but I also know that big, loud noises and kind of scary animals/somewhat violent scenes frighten him a little bit. The sharks in Finding Nemo just stopped freaking him out a few months ago. So, knowing MY KID, I wouldn't take him, but it's probably fine if your kid varies wildly. As a blanket statement, I'd say that it felt better suited for ages 5-6 than younger pre-schoolers.
Interested to hear what you thought (if you've also seen it early) or think (when you do see it).
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(A big thanks to VisitScotland for the invite, by the way. It's refreshing when someone takes the time to personalize a pitch note and not make the interaction all about them or their client. The publicist didn't ask for anything, not a review or tweet or "remember this hashtag!" Nothing other than my guest's name. It was really nice, and I do appreciate the invite a lot.)