IMDb #168 Review: Finding Nemo (2003)

Source: Wikipedia

A maniac kills and eats a man's wife and all his children, save one. Year later, the father and a mentally retarded woman go on a dangerous journey to rescue his physically disabled son. Also, they're fish, and this movie's for kids.

Nemo, the titular localized disaster zone, gets scooped up by divers and plopped in a quack dentist's aquarium. His embarrassingly overprotective dad charges headlong into danger to save his boy from getting a scratch. In fact, the incredible journey goes viral, rippling through the ocean faster than the East Australian Current.

The rules of this universe are baffling but consistent. Fish have expressive eyebrows. Their offspring go to school with musically pedantic manta rays. Aquarium dwellers befriend pelicans and perform tribal initiation rituals. Colorful denizens of the Great Barrier Reef can apparently survive in any environment. These include Sydney's polluted bay, the deep-down Abyssal Zone, and the Jonah zone. All aquatic species (except weird ones like jellyfish and anglerfish) can inexplicably communicate, as well as understand human speech. One, in particular, can read English.

I nitpick because I can only nitpick -- this movie's scarily close to perfection. The animation's brilliant as ever. The storytelling takes the shotgun approach to the broad family audience, and blows the competition out of the water. Pixar writes children (of all species) remarkably well, most likely by consulting actual children. 

Somehow, the work remains grounded. Over-caution becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy: it results in rebellion, which results in abduction by aliens. The message boils down to all things in moderation and trust each other. Simmer at 350 for fifteen minutes, add a dash of Cajun spice, and dig into a healthy helping of chillax, yo with your fellow blazed-out surfer turtles.