The Land Before Time VII: The Stone of Cold Fire

Like the original, a well crafted heatwarming tale. This storyline is full of morals and lessons from fanily, trust, democracy, greed, honour, teamwork, friendship and much more.

The animation is traditional and simplistic with some innccuracies of depictions of species' features and some inaccuacies between Mesozoic and Cenozoic periods. However the dubbing is amazing with characters vocal patterns and use of language being correlative to the species presumed intelligence.

Unlike the original this has several musical numbers which seem dubious in the context of the series. The songs seem to get marginally better throughout the series.

A must watch for kids.

I'm certainly not going to sit here and extol their virtues, but I don't think anyone can say the 'Land before time' sequels are specifically bad. They are light and frivolous compared to Don Bluth's 1988 progenitor, yes, largely lacking the earnestness, substance, and nuance that have made it a minor modern classic. Even as the shortcomings are evident, however, and the writing relatively simple and unsophisticated, the direct-to-video offerings are only intended for mild entertainment in the first place. We may scrutinize, and we may wish that they were built to appeal to a broader audience instead of catering (perhaps condescendingly) to the very youngest of viewers, but they're modestly enjoyable in the least, and some (including sixth entry 'The secret of Saurus Rock') are notably better than others. So we sit with mixed expectations for seventh installment 'The stone of cold fire,' but there's still a possibility that it could stand firm on its own legs, and if nothing else it will surely fit in among its brethren. And, well, the latter holds true.

Here, there is a great deal to take in right from the start. With a new studio accordingly taking over much of the animation, and especially with digital methods now employed instead of the traditional hand-drawn animation previously seen, this release takes some getting used to. It's still the case that the colors are vibrant, and we get rich detail in active elements and even more so in the beautiful backgrounds, though I do wonder if there's even less nuance here than in the other sequels (let alone compared to the original TLBT), all accentuated as we see characters animated against static backgrounds. Then, too, for as straightforward and uncomplicated as the storytelling has commonly been in this series (at least since the first), it comes across that new screenwriter Len Uhley tries to smash too many ideas together here, and this picture is arguably both overfull and full of itself. Introducing the scientifically-minded gallimimuses ("Rainbow Faces") is one thing, but the accompanying song ("Beyond the Mysterious Beyond") seems to go a step too far. That's to say nothing of adding Petrie's dubious uncle and his friends on top of the curiosity of the titular object, and all of the conflicts, beats, character reactions, and story ideas to follow.

True, the voice cast is reliable, including industry icons Jeff Bennett, Rob Paulsen, and Jim Cummings, nevermind special guest star Michael York, and one could argue that the performances into which they're guided are more sure-footed this time around - that is, not entirely as unnaturally cutesy and childish as we've heard in the last five examples. Michael Tavera's score arguably stands out more, being more robust in and of itself and also benefiting from a hardier sound design. Regardless of how exactly they're treated, there are concrete notions herein for the narrative, and in fact there are touches of subtlety that have been sorely missing from the franchise for awhile. For example, Pterano and his pals are up to no good, and while that wickedness is as plain as day, the antagonists' methods are a little sly and underhanded. We get adventure, and drama, and some humor to round things out, and there are even darker slivers of violence than we've gotten since 1988. I quite believe 'The stone of cold fire' needed a more measured, deliberate hand, not just in conception but in its execution (including pacing), but overall the result is fairly solid.

It's just that the doing is A Bit Much. And where 'The Great Valley adventure' or 'Journey through the mists' were A Bit Much owing to their distinct juvenility; this particularly is A Bit Much because while the underlying thoughts in this instance are reasonably sturdy, the sum total feels excessive, brusque, and maybe even a tad forced. Moreover, while there is notable strength in some regards, and some cleverness (once again, the antagonists benefit from some of the best writing), this feature is not completely free of the issues that have troubled its video predecessors, including songs of variable quality. So here we are again, with a 'Land before time' sequel that IS a good time, but softly so, and somewhat passively. I can honestly say that I like 'The stone of cold fire,' but I'm unlikely to dwell on it for even a moment hereafter, and there's no need whatsoever to make a special effort to watch. Provided that something of such a temperate tenor is something you can get on board with, it's duly worthwhile if you come across it; would that the movie elicited a more enthusiastic response.

The Land Before Time VII: The Stone of Cold Fire, the seventh installment in the Land Before Time series, boy I'm catching up after all these years of sequel after sequel. It's just crazy how many of these movies there are, right? But I'm not complaining, from what I was seeing in the ratings, I've been expecting trash when it came to these movies, but so far they've been enjoyable. The Stone of Cold Fire isn't my favorite of what I've seen so far, but I really did like it. The story is really keeping up very well and the journey with Littlefoot and his friends have been just great to watch. I really liked the family story in this one, how many kids have had that one relative that just disappointed them and they keep hoping that they'll come back, that's what I think made The Stone of Cold Fire a great story to relate too.

One night, Littlefoot sees a "flying rock" falling from the sky and colliding with a mountain in the Smoking Mountain range. The flying rock's appearance differs very much from any Littlefoot has seen so far. When Littlefoot tells about what he has seen the next morning, most of the full-grown dinosaurs in the Great Valley, none of whom has seen the flying rock, disbelieve Littlefoot's story. However, two newcomers, the mysterious "Rainbow Faces", begin to speak eloquently of a "Stone of Cold Fire" possessing seemingly magical properties, and other wonders that might become known if the dinosaurs free themselves from limits and think "beyond the Mysterious Beyond". Littlefoot embraces this idea, his imagination having been stimulated by the ideas. However, Mr. Threehorn, being practical tells the Rainbow Faces how things work in the valley: first, a flying rock is a flying rock; second, fire can't be cold; and third, there's nothing beyond the Mysterious Beyond. Unknown to the others, Petrie's uncle Pterano has also heard. Being highly ambitious and deceitful, he makes plans to take possession of the stone and its supposed powers. Pterano and his two cronies, Rinkus and Sierra, confront Littlefoot and his friends and offer to help searching for the stone to prove its existence. Littlefoot refuses to search for the stone, feeling reluctance to trust Pterano. It is soon shown that no adult trusts Pterano, who once was expelled from the Herd on a charge of neglect. Following that, Pterano asks Petrie, who idolizes him, to obtain the information about the place where the meteor landed from Littlefoot. Ducky is surprised by Sierra while eavesdropping on Pterano, whereupon she is abducted by Pterano. The group sets out to save Ducky and recover the cold fire stone before Pterano and his gang does.

The Land Before Time VII: The Stone of Cold Fire is a great story for those who know what it feels like to have disappointment, but I loved how it really picked up in the end and just had a great happy ending, even if it can be unrealistic compared to real life, but for the kid's sake, it's good to have that happy ending. I would definitely recommend this sequel, I really like these movies and hope the ratings kick up a bit and that people will be more open to these sequels. They're great family films, short, but always deliver a great story with Littlefoot and his friends.

6/10

I remembered watching this a few years ago as a six year old child in the early 2000s when it first came out and I actually liked it. Which is why I think that this surpasses both "The Time of the Great Giving" and "The Secret of Saurus Rock" as the best of the series.

Yes, the story's a little episodic filled with forgettable songs and the fact that it's too short, but it doesn't matter.

The animation is very nice to look at and the editing is very decent. The characters are well-developed and the pacing moves along very nicely. I know it's weird, but I actually liked the villains. Rinkus and Sierra were great, but I think that Pterano steals the show. Littlefoot was tolerable as the main protagonist as is the two rainbowfaces.

The strongest aspect is the excellent voice acting and the hilarious dialog. I like Sierra's "No, no, no, jeb, jeb, jeb, it's driving me nuts nuts nuts!" and the rest of the quotes in this movie. The voice acting, like I said before, is very excellent with Michael York stealing the show for portraying Pterano very well.

Overall, not excellent, but is arguably the best in the series and it's definitely worth watching!

Littlefoot observes a "stone of cold fire" fall into the Mysterious Beyond but everyone thinks he imagines it, apart from Petrie's uncle, Pterano.

This film has a serious message about how we should take responsibility for our actions. It also explains that goodness can be found even in a person who seems bad.

Pterano and his henchmen are entertaining new villains, especially Pterano. He basks in his assumed greatness and demonstrates a range of emotions. He is excellently voiced by Michael York. Two other new characters are a pair of "rainbow faces" who encourage Littlefoot in his quest for knowledge. They are mysterious right up to the surprise ending which I won't give away.

The youngsters are as cute as ever, especially Ducky and Petrie, who are given more to do than normal. The best song is sung by Pterano. The animation isn't top notch but that is only to be expected from a straight to video release. It can be enjoyed by adults. (I'm 23)

Rating 9/10