Brenda Chapman (1) (1962–)

I really liked this movie but god, the mom could be so fucking insufferable. I know it's part of the story, and that in this time era, arranged marriages and what have you were a real thing, and Merida resolved that in the end, but I still fucking hate her mother and the glaringly obvious double standard that was held for Merida and her little brothers.

Take a heroic journey with Merida, a skilled archer and headstrong daughter of King Fergus and Queen Elinor. Determined to carve her own path in life, Merida defies an age-old custom sacred to the unruly and uproarious lords of the land. When Merida's actions inadvertently unleash chaos in the kingdom, she must harness all of her skills and resources - including her clever and mischievous triplet brothers - to undo a beastly curse before it's too late, and discover the meaning of true bravery.

A teenage princess has her mother turned into a bear.

Very underrated. No, it's not the best Pixar movie (that's hardly a fair comparison to make for any movie), but it might be the strongest emotionally. My wife observes that it's the first time a fight scene made her cry.

Concept: D
Story: A
Characters: A
Dialog: C
Pacing: B
Cinematography: B
Special effects/design: A
Acting: B
Music: B

Enjoyment: A

GPA: 3.1/4

On its own, it's a quite lovely film with beautiful animation, though as it's a cartoon movie, it does add more to the original Bible story (which is acknowledged with a note at the beginning of the film)