We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story (1993)
If you want to see why the bad Don Bluth animated films didn't measure up to Disney's efforts at the time but you don’t actually want to watch a Don Bluth animated film, try We’re Back! A Dinosaur’s Story instead.
Told in flashback, a Tyrannosaurus named Rex (voiced by John Goodman) explains how he and several other dinosaurs - Triceratops Woog (Rene LeVant), Elsa the Pteranodon (Felicity Kendal), and Parasaurolophus Dweeb (Charles Fleischer) - were given sentience by Captain Neweyes (Walter Cronkite) so they could be brought to present-day New York City and fulfill the dreams of children. Separated from their caretaker, they befriend Louie (Joey Shea) and Cecilia (Yeardley Smith) and embark on an adventure that will bring them to the evil circus of Professor Screweyes (Kenneth Mars).
At a mere 73 minutes (that’s including the credits) this movie feels padded out. You take out the wraparound story and you must have just barely over an hour's worth of material, which is to say not much at all. The characters are not compelling and the story could be summarized in just a few sentences. It's exactly what you expect out of a film with a Tyrannosaurus called "Rex". His three companions get even less characterization than he does. This wouldn't be such an issue if the human sidekicks were interesting. They aren't either. Louie is a generic runaway who left home because his mother loved him too much. Cecilia is upset because her parents are off vacation without her. It's bad enough we'll be stuck with a bunch of kids instead of the ichthyosaurs-out-of-water but the second you hear them speak, you've got their entire stories figured out.
There's only one element of this story that piques your interest at all. The dinosaurs have been granted intelligence by Captain Neweyes. Of all the times and places he could've transported them to, it's the city as his evil, insane bother. This lunatic operates a circus where people go to get frightened and he wants to use the thunder lizards' natural ability to terrify in his show. An evil circus where the monsters are real and magic exists?! That sounds awesome. Prepare to be disappointed. Directors Dick Zondag, Ralph Zondag, Phil Nibbelink and Simon Wells might've started with some ideas of what a scary circus might be, and proceeded to water them down until they were nothing. It’s obvious Screweyes has magical powers, but he doesn’t actually employ ghosts and demons in his act, he uses people dressed up as monsters. Talk about a letdown. What’s the point of having a bad guy with no motivations except “I’m crazy, and I’m evil” if you make him a wuss compared to his time-traveling brother?
We're Back! A Dinosaur Story lures you in with its premise but after you're committed, it stops trying. The characters aren't interesting - not even the villain. The simplistic plot will only entertain the youngest viewers. The visuals are ok but nothing special. You'll notice Screweyes’ design is inconsistent in several scenes and overall, it feels empty and lifeless. There’s a pretty good original song during the first act. That’s all it has to offer. (On DVD, January 23, 2015)
