1.) Most Liked Land Before Time Character:
My favorite character is Ali. There is a lot I like about her. For one thing, she learns concepts very quickly. Just a little exposure can grant her great knowledge to a subject. For example, before her Great Valley in “The Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists” she was unaware of interspecies socializing. After spending just a very short time with other kinds, she came to understand a great deal, shown through the song “It Takes All Sorts.” She sang parts that really had a good message to say about accepting other kinds.
It take all sorts
to make a world!
Short and tall sorts,
large and small sorts,
to fill this pretty planet with love and laughter;
to make it great to live in
tomorrow, and the day after.True, the others sang about good ideals too, but I was most impressed with Ali doing so because she had only learned about accepting others earlier that very day. She catches on really fast, in short. Being rather slow myself, I all the more admire those who can adapt their way of thinking expediently.
I am also very fond of how she doesn’t let others treating her poorly effect how she treats them back. Cera was constantly on her during that movie, and Ali not once said anything mean back, nor did anything in retaliation. Even after all Cera said to/about her, that did not effect Ali’s decision to risk her own life to save hers. It is possible that Cera wouldn’t be around if Ali hadn’t jumped on Dil’s back to save her. I don’t think Cera believed she could have escaped on her own either, because she gave a very heart-felt thank you to Ali.
Ali seems to me like a dinosaur pleaser. She prefers to do what others want of her, and not so much what she would like to do. When Ret asked her to play a game that she was tired of, she put up very little resistance. She didn’t say no, just a slight inquiry about other options, and when Ret made it clear that his mind was made, she didn’t say another word in objection. You could say she was kind of a pushover. She doesn’t speak her mind when she doesn’t like something another does, just goes along with it. My guess is that she just likes to keep those around her happy, even if it costs her her own happiness. I’ve been that way a lot, so I can really relate to how she feels about it. You just kind of like to keep the peace in the air blowing, not beat against it with your own objections.
Ali is also very protective of her friends. I don’t think she was exactly on Ret’s side with his stories; I think she’s more defensive of those she cares about in general. Littlefoot accused Ret of lying, so she went into action to stand up for Ret. I think that if Littlefoot was telling stories and Ret called him on it, she would have gotten the same way to Ret.
I wouldn’t say exactly that she was gullible. She was a close of Ret and I think that just let her guard down. When you really care about someone, you are more susceptible to felling victim of his or her faults. Here’s an example: Let’s say you have a good job and make a lot of money. You are usually very weary of loan requests to you. You have met people here and there and they have asked to borrow but you always say no. Then a friend comes along who you have known for over a year. He asks you for money, and because you are close to him there is this trust, this lowering of your guard, so you lend him the money. I’d bet if some random kid came along and said the things ret did, she probably would have laughed. I think she just wasn’t expecting someone she had let herself get close to to try deceiving her, so she did not question his words in her mind. Some things are just easier for me to swallow when hearing them from someone close, so I can relate and don’t look down on her for how she acted in “The Brave Longneck Scheme,” especially considering her age. She was just a little kid. A lot of kids believe things that older people would never, though there are always kids around who won’t believe some stories despite their age.
I really like how forgiving she is. This is highlighted in both of her appearances. She forgave Cera for all the mean things she had said, and Ret for lying to her. She just won’t hold on to grudges, and I really look up to that. For these reasons and more, Ali has become my favorite character.
2.) Least Liked Land Before Time Character:
It’s a hard decision for me, but I’d have to say Ozzie from “The Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure.” I see him treat Strut in ways similar to how Ichy treats Dil, but I dislike Ozzie more because he is treating poorly a family, his own brother. While it is wrong to treat anyone poorly, doing so to one’s family just strikes me as even more wrong. They grew up together. They ate together. They went places together. There were born from the same parents (most likely anyway). The way he treated his sibling really got to me. Smacking him, controlling his diet, ordering him around, having him do the work (holding the egg the whole time), calling him names just from him wanting to eat another type of food, and so on. Being mean is one thing, but being mean to your blood just seems darker in my book. Cera is mean fairly often, but I have yet to see her mistreat her sister. Ozzie just seems to undermine the value of family and the ties it should bring.
3.) Most Liked Land Before Time Song:
My preference in a favorite Land Before Time song has differed over time, and presently, it is “Bestest Friends.” It’s too difficult to explain why.
4.) Least Liked Land Before Time Song:
Very easy choice: “Girls & Dads.” Here are the lyrics:
http://www.freewebs.com/action9000/Songs/girlsanddads.htm I believe that song went a bit overboard with its comments of fathers. These are movies that should be completely appropriate for children in every way, yet I feel that a lot of comments in this song may give children a poor message. Here are some reviews of that song from Amazon.com:
After watching this movie, my 4 year started singing dads are dumb, dads are dumb- because that's all she could remember of the song. Sometimes pre-schoolers don't "get" the entire message of a song or movie. You may have to have a long discussion over the meaning of this movie, so be prepared!
It is no wonder that parents in our society are struggling to gain respect and be able to control their children. We worry that movies and games they play are appropriate and make claims that there are terrible things being watched out there. But right here in front of us is a movie we should feel safe watching and all it is showing our children is that it is okay to disrespect their father. Besides, according to the movie, Dad's just don't get it anyways.
The reviewers "B&B Brothers Motorplant" say "all [that this movie] is showing our children is that it is okay to disrespect their father. Besides, according to the movie, Dad's just don't get it anyways."
"Dad's [incorrect use of possessive] just don't get it anyways [incorrect use of plural]."
In my opinion, this song is the exact opposite of “Me and my Dad” from “The Land Before Time X.” That one sings about how great it is to have a dad. This one sings about complaints of them. It’s like the song writers contradicted themselves. One movie they go on and on about the greatness of fathers, then the very next movie they express problems with them. There is no contest. I dislike no Land Before Time song more than this.
5.) Most Liked Land Before Time Film:
Despite Ali being my favorite character, I can’t say movie four is my favorite. I have to go with “The Land Before Time V: The Mysterious Island.” I could talk about it all day (not literally) so I’ll just limit my response to a few points of interest.
It was nice to see how Chomper was turning out. It’s amazing how just that short time with leaf-eaters changed his growth so much. I imagine had his egg not been lost, he would have been just like the orange Sharptooth from “The Lonely Journey,” growling and biting.
It’s intriguing how he developed talking as he mentioned upon the gang’s arrival, “It’s nice to have someone to talk to that doesn’t roar back.” This adds mystery to the movie, and unanswered questions are fun, as they let the viewers imagination go to work. Just like Ducky saying how it’s bad to wake a sleep walker in movie twelve, there is never an explanation about it.
This was the first time the gang ventured from their families and ended up without a way home. It adds that suspense, as viewers are going, “Okay, the only path home is gone. How are they going to get back now?” I feel the timing of Dulcy’s arrival was a bit too convenient, but with limited time, I guess the writers could fit the gang staying much longer. I always thought it would be neat if Dulcy had taken a while and the gang was stuck for the night. I could see them riding on Chomper’s parents’ heads as they were shown around and- ah, sorry. This is about my likes, not what I wish had happened.
It was very touching how Littlefoot drew close Chomper. It was amazing how a leaf-eater and meat-eater were able to do so, though it’s easier to grasp considering they are so young. Children are more apt to make unusual friends. You won’t often see a grown person run into the house grasping a bug saying a new friend was found. Children just befriend more freely, but still. Littlefoot was pressed by his other friends to be cautious, but he cared about Chomper enough that he defended him strongly without question (perhaps like Ali did when Littlefoot questioned Ret?). Even with little food on the island, Chomper hid his friends, and Littlefoot dived into the Big Water to save Chomper’s life. The bond was beautiful.
Truly a pleasure it was to see grown Sharpteeth being kind to leaf-eaters. I’ve often wondered if that news was what led the leaf-eater grown-ups to accept Chomper. I never thought I’d see a grown Sharptooth smile. Priceless. I don’t think his parents remembered Littlefoot from movie two. If they had, I don’t think his mother would have referred to Littlefoot as food, nor his father make a comment about eating them at all. When his mother say Littlefoot, she didn’t seem surprised at all, no form of recognition, which surprised me. If I lost my child and found him with another kid, I think I’d remember what the other kid looked like.
I was bit intrigued by the revealing of Cera’s motion sickness. Just watching movie five didn’t make me surprised, it was the episode “The Great Log Running Game.” After Cera felt so horrible riding on a log in movie five, I was a bit taken back by her eagerness to do so in that episode. In fact, running on a log seems even more stomach-upsetting then just laying down like she did in movie five, so I guess she just got over it. Some people get motion sickness then grow out of it with time.
And those would be a few of my points of interest from “The land Before V: The Mysterious Island.”
6.) Least Liked Land Before Time Film:
That would be “The Land Before Time XI: Invasion of the Tinysauruses.” Yes, that movie contains my least favorite Land Before Time song, but my choosing of the movie as a whole as my least favorite one is completely unrelated. If “Girls & and Dads” was in movie twelve for instance, movie eleven would still be at the bottom of my list.
My main dislike of the movie is how they tore down Littlefoot’s reputation that they had so long built up. Littlefoot had always been a character of virtue. In movie one, he led the whole gang to the valley by following his heart. In two, he stayed by Chomper (not physically) the whole time, even when the others were starting to back down. In three, he was the one who encouraged the others to go help the bullies, even after how mean they had been. In four, he decided to travel to a dangerous, far-off land to save his grandfather. In five, like in two, he remained faithful to Chomper till the end. In six, he was the one determined to “fix” the bad luck the gang had “caused.” In seven, he was able to sense that Pterano was up to no good, getting a compliment from his grandfather about his instincts, and later, his perception alone was praised by the Rainbow Faces. In eight, when the others were singing about how Spike didn’t fit in, he brough up points about how Spike did. In nine, he was the one who decided to go help Mo home. In ten, he was very kind to Shorty and accepted him as a brother, even after the way Shorty had treated him. In eleven- bam! His reputation was shot.
He tries to steal a tree sweet in secret before he was allowed, that alone looking bad on him. Then he falls and ruins the tree, and the Tinysauruses run up and eat all the tree sweets that had fallen to the ground. He was seen leaving the area, so he was put on the spot and had to speak publicly about what he knew. True, he did not eat the sweets, and he made that clear, but many of the details he provided were false. Littlefoot has been made into a lyer, but it doesn’t stop there. He then discovers where the Tinysauruses are living and lies to one of them as well. I could see someone else doing something like that, but after the way Littlefoot has been portrayed all through the years of films, I was in shock.
To me at least, Cera was more aggressive than usual, making things a bit awkward with her violence. She shoved Ducky against a tree and knocked Petrie down numerous times. The way she would take her aggressions out on her friends was not appreciated.
Some other things I didn’t like, but those are it mainly.
7.) Most Memorable Land Before Time Moment:
This one is no toughie. I’d have to say the scene that has the most touching impact on me would have to be the one where Littlefoot is born; it really warms the heart. It can truly captivate you to watch it all unfold. His egg crackles slowly, soon revealing an upside-down baby Longneck. He sits himself up, smiling warmly at his first sight of the world around him. He gazes around, taking in the images of the scenery and its inhabitants. With his first sighting of his cheerful mother, he is at first surprised, so much that he loses his balance and falls over. His mother washes him, which at first he tries to escape from, then remains in place, embracing the warm tongue he has quickly come to enjoy the sensation of. With appreciation, he gingerly tries returning a lick. He then clutches tightly to his mother’s face, letting her lift him gently into the air. He then becomes aware of new faces, and skitters away nervously, losing his balance and falling in the process, coming to rest by his mother. She encourages him to be not afraid, and with that, he pokes his little head out to gaze yet again at the new faces around him. He quickly grows tired, and lies down to rest; coming into the world and meeting his mother was quite an ordeal for him. The other creatures approach him and he again becomes uneasy and runs for the first time, only to again lose his footing. His mother gently clutches her sweet boy with her lips and lifts him into the air, setting him down to rest against her soft, warm body, where he soon drifts off to sleep. No other Land Before Time moment clings to my heart as much as this one does, though when his mother dies, it tears at my heart with the same strength.
And that sums up my answers to the questions here.
