Earlier this week, reports of Pixar pulling Bob Peterson off directing The Good Dinosaur surfaced. He was notably absent at both the animation presentation and The Good Dinosaur panel at D23, leaving some wondering if there was trouble between the two parties.

Well, it isn’t so much trouble, but more of just a shift in direction. The LA Times confirms the news of Peterson’s departure from the project. However, the director, who was the voice of Roz in Monsters, Inc, will remains a part of the Pixar family. The film’s directorial duties will go to the Pixar Brain Trust, which consists of: John Lasseter, Lee Unkrich, Mark Andrews, and Pete Sohn, the latter of whom had originally been co-director with Peterson.

Brave
Directed by Mark Andrews, Brenda Chapman
Starring Kelly Macdonald, Emma Thompson, Billy Connolly, Julie Walters, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson, Robbie Coltrane
Walt Disney Home Entertainment
5-Disc Blu-ray | 3-Disc Blu-ray | DVD
Release Date: November 13, 2012

The number 13. It is a bad one, often fraught with misfortune. Sadly that misfortune applies to Pixar’s unlucky 13th feature, Brave, a bold, well-intentioned and genuinely good film with many elements that regretfully do not work in its favor. Fortuitously, though, its Blu-ray release is among the best you can find this holiday season. So bear with me and embark on a Blu-ray review of Brave.

Film

After an intense prologue set in medieval Scotland, where it looks like King Fergus (voiced with gusto by Billy Connolly) will be slain by demon bear Mor’du, we think the film will strike a consistently dark tone. In one sense, yes, Brave heads down an intense path with some accomplished guidance. Yet it also wanders around a trail scattered by silliness and irrelevance. That is perhaps the most consistent issue with Brave, in that it holds a conflicting narrative, never knowing if it wants to be a forceful or relaxed picture.

Brave
Co-Directed by Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, and Brenda Chapman
Written by Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Brenda Chapman, Irene Mecchi
Starring Kelly Macdonald, Julie Walters, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson, Robbie Coltrane, John Ratzenberger
Disney/Pixar
Rated PG | 93 Minutes
Release Date: June 22, 2012

November 22nd, 1995. Aside from it being my sister’s 23rd birthday, it’s also the theatrical release date of Pixar’s first feature film, Toy Story. I was 10 years, 11 months and 18 days old, the perfect age (approximately) for your typical adolescent boy to be super-excited about an all-CGI film.

The thing is, I wasn’t really a normal kid. As a chubby, four-eyed fourth grader, I was wearing Aliens t-shirts and watching Terminator 2: Judgment Day and RoboCop on VHS while other kids sang along to “Under the Sea” or “A Whole New World.”

Walt Disney classics like The Little Mermaid, Aladdin, and The Lion King didn’t interest me. I was too busy tugging at my mom’s shirt, begging her to rent Alien 3 from the local video store – which she did, only if I promised not to repeat any of the bad words I heard. She still ended up fast-forwarding through the gory moments, but by God no cartoon could ever compare.

John Carter
Directed by Andrew Stanton
Written by Andrew Stanton, Mark Andrews, and Michael Chabon
Starring Taylor Kitsch, Lynn Collins, Willem Dafoe, Samantha Morton, Mark Strong, and Dominic West
Walt Disney Pictures
Release Date: March 9, 2012

The Story

Captain John Carter (Taylor Kitsch), a former Confederate officer who returned from fighting in the Civil War to find his wife and child murdered by Apaches, is now scouring the deserts and hills of Arizona looking for a mysterious cave of gold. When a group of Calvary soldiers attempt to conscript him into their fight against the Apaches in that territory, Carter escapes their clutches and soon manages to find the cave he has been looking for, but a strange and bald being is already there waiting for him. After a brief fight Carter emerges the victor, but his adversary activates a device and speaks the word “Barsoom” before perishing from his wounds. The reluctant soldier is suddenly transported from Earth to a place unfamiliar to him. In his new surroundings, a planet called Barsoom (better known to us as Mars), Carter can leap great distances and has increased strength, but he soon discovers he’s not alone.

Disney’s John Carter opens in theaters everywhere today. The studio’s attempts to rectify their shockingly lackluster marketing campaign in recent months has been bold and commendable. Hopefully their efforts will not be in vain. A minute-long action scene from the film has been released and you can watch it here below.

I like it. Hell I like virtually everything I see and/or hear from this movie. There’s a strong sense of fun and adventure one cannot help but feel from watching this recent trailers and clips. Matched with the impressive visuals and Michael Giacchino‘s grandiose music score, John Carter looks to be one of the few genuine movies released this year that go beyond their massive hype.