This Pete’s Dragon Review was written by a mom, Myla Tosatto!
“He has the head of a camel, the neck of a crocodile.
It sounds rather strange.
He’s both a fish and a mammal, and I hope he’ll never change.”
Those are lines in the song, “It’s Not Easy”, from the 1977 original Pete’s Dragon. Well, things HAVE changed. And that’s a good thing. The only thing that remains the same in David Lowery’s version is the unbelievable relationship between a boy named Pete (Oakes Fegley) and his dragon, Elliott. Also not changed- this is a VERY traditional Disney movie. By that, I mean it starts with an established Disney trope. Pete loses his parents in the first scene. He is quickly adopted by Elliott and our story begins. Be sure to also read our favorite Pete’s Dragon Movie Quotes.
While in the forest, Pete is discovered by Natalie (Oona Laurence), daughter of Jack (Wes Bentley) and soon to be stepdaughter of Grace (Bryce Dallas Howard). Pete is brought to civilization all the while trying to make his way back to Elliott while Elliott is searching for Pete. While protecting Pete, Elliott is captured by Gavin (Karl Urban). Bad things happen, good things happen. I don’t want to ruin it for you.
The movie can be a little dramatic for little kids, so you may want to have a talk with your children about this one before seeing it.
I am not going to lie, I fell in love with both Pete and Elliott as soon as they hit the screen. I will lie and say that it was someone else wiping tears away at the end. It wasn’t me!* I swear! I’m a grown woman.
*It was totally me.
NOTE- Can we please have Robert Redford do every narration for everything from now on? Whom do I call to make this happen?
Pete’s Dragon is NOW playing in theaters!
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