This month we glance again on We’re Again! A Dinosaur’s Story, one of many three animated movies produced by Steven Spielberg’s Amblimation and an unofficial animated companion to Jurassic Park. It was launched on November 24, 1993, and in contrast to the aforementioned live-action dino-centric film that 12 months, it wasn’t successful with critics or audiences.
The story begins with Buster the Chook (Blaze Berdahl) planning to run away from his household nest. However earlier than he hits the skies, he chats with a pleasant Tyrannosaurus rex, cleverly named Rex (John Goodman), who takes a break from taking part in golf to inform the birdie about his journey to turning into a speaking dinosaur. It’s an odd story to bookend the film, however not the weirdest factor that may occur.
In a flashback, we see Rex in his pure carnivorous type as he’s plucked from prehistoric instances by inventor/time traveler Captain Neweyes (Walter Cronkite) and his alien assistant Vorb (Jay Leno). He’s fed Mind Grain Cereal, triggering a visible and psychological transformation that softens his terrifying look and provides him sufficient intelligence to change into sentient. Rex then meets his fellow speaking dinos — Woog (René Le Vant), a Triceratops, Elsa (Felicity Kendal), a Pteranodon, and Dweeb (Charles Fleischer, aka Roger Rabbit), a Parasaurolophus.
Neweyes reveals them his Want Radio, which captures youngsters wishing that dinosaurs had been actual. The quartet excitedly agrees to go to the American Museum of Pure Historical past in New York Metropolis as a result of each whimsical youngsters’s story takes place in NYC. Inside minutes of descending into town, they come upon probably the most New York child ever, Louie (Joey Shea), who’s working away to the circus as a result of his mother and father are too loving or one thing.
A chase sequence ends with him and Elsa flying into an enormous and empty penthouse the place they discover Cecilia Nuthatch (Yeardley Smith), a Harry Potter character title if I ever heard one. The lonely woman, whose mother and father are too busy to concentrate to her, joins Louie as one other adolescent human runaway and pal for the lovable dinos.
Essentially the most memorable scene of We’re Again is after they try to mix in on the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade as large dinosaur robots. That doesn’t final lengthy as a result of Rex decides to appease the children within the viewers and finally ends up singing the tremendous catchy “Roll Again the Rock (To the Daybreak of Time),” a tune that’s lined by Little Richard ultimately credit.
The children are the primary to fulfill the film’s underdeveloped villain, Professor Screweyes (Kenneth Mars), the unhinged, evil reverse brother of Captain Neweyes whom the dinosaurs had been warned about. He has a Fright Radio that lets him hear everybody’s fears, an implement which is basically an concept machine to assist him add scares to his Eccentric Circus. He has additionally created his personal transformation concoction, which he dubbed Mind Drain, however as an alternative of cereal, it comes within the type of tablets.
That is the place We’re Again will get darkish. Louie is so determined to hitch the circus that he willingly accepts a mysterious contract, signing his title in blood. Cecilia follows, presumably to stick with her pal and never as a result of she desires to change into a scary actor.
What makes this scene so creepy is that Screweyes seemingly has no curiosity or use for these youngsters however lets them signal themselves away anyway. Nonetheless, it really works out for him ultimately as a result of he will get one thing higher. The children’ dinosaur friends observe them down and comply with be horrifying points of interest in trade for letting Louie and Cecilia — who’re quickly became monkeys — get away of the binding contract.
Louie and Cecilia get up human to search out Stubbs (Martin Quick), a jovial but anxious clown who stands out amongst the decidedly darkish environment. Now they hatch their very own plan to rescue their mates, who’ve devolved into ravenous monsters.
As you may see, the plot of We’re Again is each skinny and type of messy. However contemplating John Patrick Shanley (Moonstruck) penned the script based mostly on Hudson Talbott’s 20-page guide of the identical title, it’s not that dangerous. Manufacturing started in 1990 with a rotation of administrators engaged on the movie at completely different instances together with Phil Nibbelink (Who Framed Roger Rabbit) and Simon Wells (Mars Wants Mothers), together with brothers Dick and Ralph Zondag (Dinosaur). They most likely may’ve expanded the story extra if the runtime was longer than 71 minutes.
The music was composed by James Horner (Casper), the grasp of hauntingly whimsical scores. Nonetheless, in a 2018 interview with SYFY Wire, Phil Nibbelink claimed that whereas the rating was written by Horner, it was really performed by others. Both method, the rating is ideal for the movie’s shifting tones.
A noticeably odd facet of the film is the ensemble solid of massive names. Information anchor Walter Cronkite does properly because the kind-hearted explorer, nevertheless it’s a weird selection, although perhaps not as unusual as chef/media character Julia Baby voicing museum curator Dr. Juliet Bleeb. The magnificent solid total speaks to the draw of working with an enormous like Spielberg.
We’re Again! A Dinosaur’s Story is an odd and forgettable story that begins as a lighthearted but melancholic story about friendship and quickly descends into full-on nightmare gasoline. It’s the kind of deep-cut Nineties media you would possibly vaguely recall, however because it’s talked about so little, you assume it should’ve been a fever dream. Whereas the animation nonetheless holds up and the odd array of voices make it a enjoyable watch, We’re Again! possible solely appeals to these with a way of nostalgia for the obscure title.
We’re Again! A Dinosaur’s Story is obtainable to hire on Prime Video.
