Brave (2012)

Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.

Directors:

Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman,

Writers:

Brenda Chapman (story), Mark Andrews (screenplay),

Stars:

Kelly Macdonald, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson

Won 1 Oscar. Another 12 wins & 25 nominations.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Kelly Macdonald	...	Merida (voice)
Billy Connolly	...	Fergus (voice)
Emma Thompson	...	Elinor (voice)
Julie Walters	...	The Witch (voice)
Robbie Coltrane	...	Lord Dingwall (voice)
Kevin McKidd	...	Lord MacGuffin / Young MacGuffin (voice)
Craig Ferguson	...	Lord Macintosh (voice)
Sally Kinghorn	...	Maudie (voice)
Eilidh Fraser	...	Maudie (voice)
Peigi Barker	...	Young Merida (voice)
Steven Cree	...	Young Macintosh (voice)
Steve Purcell	...	The Crow (voice)
Callum O'Neill	...	Wee Dingwall (voice)
Patrick Doyle	...	Martin (voice)
John Ratzenberger	...	Gordon (voice)

Storyline

Set in Scotland in a rugged and mythical time, "Brave" features Merida, an aspiring archer and impetuous daughter of royalty. Merida makes a reckless choice that unleashes unintended peril and forces her to spring into action to set things right.

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Plot Keywords:

princess | archery | witch | archer | wish | 

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Taglines:

Change your fate.

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Genres:

Animation | Action | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some scary action and rude humor

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 June 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Bear and the Bow

Box Office

Budget:

$185,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$66,323,594 (USA) (22 June 2012)

Gross:

$237,282,182 (USA) (11 January 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Pictures, Pixar Animation Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

93 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Atmos Datasat Dolby Surround 7.1

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The chess set in Merida's room is the famous Lewis Chessmen from the 12th century, unearthed in Scotland in 1831.

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Goofs

During the rock-climbing/waterfall sequence, the circling birds sound like red-tailed hawks which are native to North America.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Queen Elinor: Where are you? Come out! Come out! Come on out! I'm coming to get you!
Queen Elinor: [young Merida laughs as she hides under the table] Where are you, you little rascal? I'm coming to get you!
Queen Elinor: [Elinor looks under the table but Merida quickly moves to hide somewhere else] Hmm. Where is my little Birthday girl, hm? I'm going to gobble her up when I find her!
Queen Elinor: [Merida comes up behind Elinor and goes to run away but Elinor catches her] Eat you!

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Crazy Credits

The final credit is headed Production Babies and is followed by a list of 68 given names (including a set of twins) of children born to members of the production team during filming.

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Connections

Featured in The 85th Oscars (2013)

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Soundtracks

"Into the Open Air"
Music and Lyrics by Alex Mandel
Performed by Julie Fowlis
Produced by Jim Sutherland with Éamon Doorley and Julie Fowlis
Julie Fowlis and Éamon Doorley appear courtesy of Machair Records

User Reviews

Another Great Pixar Film

Brave is a film I've been looking forward to since I first laid eyes on it's beautiful trailer. It had everything a great Pixar film has: a wonderful setting, fantastic CGI, beautiful and interesting characters, and a lot of heart. In fact, Merida alone was such an interesting and adorable character, that it was instantly on my to watch list. Granted, this isn't Pixar's best, but that's holding it up to extremely high standards. As an animated film, however, this is a fantastic and fascinating film, a treat for the summer.

Brave tells the story of the aforementioned Merida, a young, Scottish princess whose life is controlled by her mother so that she can be shaped into a queen someday over the surrounding tribes. In an effort to change her fate and be free of her oppressive, but loving mother, she attempts to change her fate, and in the process makes a huge mistake. I won't get into plot details, as the trailer really doesn't give a lot away in terms of what this film is really about, but suffice to say, there is plenty of fun and adventure to be had.

Pixar always manages to create an interesting and unique tale, and this goes right up there with the best of them. Using the Scottish highlands is both an inspiring choice and allows them to craft a beautiful film. With sweeping mountains, water, and thick and colorful forests, this is one of Pixar's best looking films to date. It trumps the jungles of UP and even the magical underwater world of Finding Nemo. There is a certain amount of magic in the environments alone, and gazing on it is a wonder. The characters are also fantastic. Merida is a wonderful addition to Disney's princess lineup, and unlike those others, she is no damsel in distress. She, like her mother, is perfectly capable of handling herself, with her trusty archery skills and even tackles a few dangerous situations on her own instead of having someone there to save her. In fact, this could be seen as an inverse, as Merida actually becomes a hero in many ways and triumphs over the males in her own age bracket. Also of note is Billy Connolly, voicing Fergus, who lends his comedic chops to create a wonderful and likable character.

While this film may not be up there with Pixar's best, it still has a wonderful story and character interaction. Merida's relationship with her family feels genuine and most children will probably be able to relate. At the heart of the story is her relationship with her mother. This is more than a story about fate, but a story about obligations to family and how growing up means taking responsibility and putting away childish selfishness in place of those responsibilities. Although the core plot is unconventional and unexpected, it has a fantastic heart and once again proves that Pixar can tell a story like no other.

Brave is an entertaining, humorous, and heartfelt story that will be wonderful for kids and adults alike. Merida is a wonderful new character and the entire film looks beautiful. Even if you don't have children, I recommend this film if you've loved other Pixar's before it.