m01's rating of LBT sequels

[m01]

Yesterday I watched The original Land Before Time and gave it 10/10 as it really was quite remarkable. It could be watched with by both adults and kids and the plot could  be seen as a regular journey or finding a way out of the limbo towards haven in afterlife.

Now, I am aware that sequels did change almost everything the first movie had and I won't be rating and comparing them to the first movie. Instead I'll totally seperate them from the original and watch them as a series for themselves.


Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure
The first thing I noticed in the movie were the roman numbers saying "II" instead of "2" and although most people would simply pass around that, I really liked it. Finally a movie that doesn't number itself by regular arabic numbers!  
Ok, now moving to the actual review. To sum the movie up, it would be somewhat like this: bad plot, two dimensional characters, very stupid antagonists, somewhat bad animation and many absurd illogical moments.
So, what was good in the movie? Somehow it managed not to become boring and although it was quite forgetable, a decent kids movie it was
Rating 5/10

Expect the third movie soon

[LBTFan13]

Just a suggestion, maybe you could explain your reasoning a bit longer. Describe why you thought the plot was bad, the antagonists were stupid, etc... Also, explain why you thought it didn't become boring, etc...

This is probably the first time you are doing something like this, so I completely understand, and please don't take my criticism too seriously. I'm just suggesting you make your review a bit longer/put a bit more detail into it just so everybody really knows how you feel about it.

In my personal opinion, I probably would have given LBT II a 7. Yes, the animation was nowhere near as good as in the first movie, but it really wasn't that bad. I really enjoyed Ozzie and Strut because they were the first antagonists that came from within the Great Valley and not from the Mysterious Beyond. I'm surprised you didn't mention the songs in this one, because they are kind of bad.

[m01]

Yes, I should make a better review for the next movie

Edit:
Forgot to respond to your critique
I didn't like Ozzie and Strut because they were the biggest cliche in the history of antagonists. Their interaction between themselves and eveyone else was just plain bad. And songs did suck, I forgot to mention them because they were totally forgotable and because I'm not really a fan of the songs

[m01]

Land Before Time III: The Time of the Great Giving
This movie was much better than the second one. Animation was better and had less problems with details than the last movie. Soundtrack fits very good in the movie and songs aren't all that bad and actually sound nice.
The frendship and unity between Littlefoot, Cera, Spike, Petrie and Ducky is much better expressed in this movie than the last one and creates a certian inspiring atmosphere in a few scenes. Bullies (or "villians of the movie" if you want to call it that way) were, although a cliche, much better and to some extent believeable.
The story wasn't anything special or unique, but as a driving force for the movie was sufficient. While I don't have a problem with short movies, this one in my opinion lacked a few scenes here and there as if the writers didn't have the time to add a few more.
All in all, the movie is quite good, but it doesn't pass the threshold to be something very memorable and special
I rate it 7/10

[DarkHououmon]

Yes, I should make a better review for the next movie

Edit:
Forgot to respond to your critique
I didn't like Ozzie and Strut because they were the biggest cliche in the history of antagonists. Their interaction between themselves and eveyone else was just plain bad. And songs did suck, I forgot to mention them because they were totally forgotable and because I'm not really a fan of the songs

How were they cliche? I saw nothing cliche about them.

[m01]

Yes, I should make a better review for the next movie

Edit:
Forgot to respond to your critique
I didn't like Ozzie and Strut because they were the biggest cliche in the history of antagonists. Their interaction between themselves and eveyone else was just plain bad. And songs did suck, I forgot to mention them because they were totally forgotable and because I'm not really a fan of the songs

How were they cliche? I saw nothing cliche about them.

Two bad guys. One is mean and stupid and the other one is confused, stupid and under the influence of the first guy.
If I were to think of the same setup outside this movie, the first thing that pops out in my head is Home Alone

[LBTFan13]

Two bad guys. One is mean and stupid and the other one is confused, stupid and under the influence of the first guy.

I wouldn't say that Ozzie was stupid, but merely blinded by his obsession with eggs.

I do agree, that setup between the two of them has been seen too often (I actually think of Pinky and the Brain), but I found it a bit more enjoyable between the two of them.

I would personally rate this one 9/10. It's the best sequel out of the bunch, but it's just not on par with the original. It improved a lot on the second movie for the better, although there were still a few minor things wrong with it. Threehorn's song "Tough" was really bad. No wonder he doesn't sing. Also, I also thought that there were some scenes that should have been expanded a bit more, like the fight between Cera and Threehorn. I don't know why, but every time I watch that scene I just feel like something was missing from it.

[m01]

Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists
Watched the fourth instalment in the series today and I must say that I'm quite happy about it.
In the core, it is the same as everything the last two movies were about. Friends are happy > everybody sings > something bad happens > everybody sings again > children need to fight antagonists > everyone sings for the third time > eveything ends good
While it may seem a little repetitive, it is childrens cartoon and depends on that formula so I can't critique that. Now to go on with the review.

Graphics are simmilar to the last movie except for little eye candy presented here (the flower). Nothing much to say here...
Story has a problem for kids to solve and although the plot wasn't very inventive, it was decent. What I liked in this movie was the "Indiana Jones" feel (kids go to explore a strange new place). Although we were taken out of the valley in the last two movies, in this one the outer world is shown more intensly and more time is spent in it, what makes the experience better. This is where the strenght of the movie comes from along with one more thing: characters.
Characters in this movie actualy do show more than "we're all friends, yay!!!!1". Cera is quite afraid/not happy with Littlefoot having a new friend and for that reason is quite bitter in some parts of the movie. Of course, the new friend dissapears after the movie what is just another way of saying that he was a tool for the writters and that they don't need him any more. While this usually is taken as a bad thing, I'm willing to pass on the opportunity here to lower the rating of the movie as this is something that actually resembles character developement for the first time in the series (first movie not included).
Another thing that I'd like to point out is a bigger number of intense action scenes. While I won't give bigger or lover rating to the movie because of it, I have quite liked it.
As for the songs...they were average, nothing special or bad. They had a few funny moments.

So all in all, this movie seems a little better than last one to me. I'm giving it 8/10

[Nick22]

The new friend was Ali, a female.. for my money 4 was the best of the easrly sequels.. not just because Ali was in it because because if its subject matter,,

[m01]

The new friend was Ali, a female.. for my money 4 was the best of the easrly sequels.. not just because Ali was in it because because if its subject matter,,

Yeah, I know she is a female. I was talking in male gender because it seemed to me that the word "friend" is male word as in my native thongue. Now that I think about it, I may have made a mistake. Sorry guys...
So far, fourth is my favorite too

[oogaboo]

You should give a bit more thought on what you liked and dislike about these movies but hey, you are entitled to your opinion. The only antagonists that I thought was stupid was  those carnivores in the thirteenth movie. Raptors bein' ticklish? Come On, Man!

[DarkHououmon]

You should give a bit more thought on what you liked and dislike about these movies but hey, you are entitled to your opinion. The only antagonists that I thought was stupid was  those carnivores in the thirteenth movie. Raptors bein' ticklish? Come On, Man!

Wait, wasn't that the 11th movie?

[oogaboo]

Wait, wasn't that the 11th movie?

I remember that it was in the thirteenth. It may have been in the eleventh but unfortunately I forgot about that movie...

[DarkHououmon]

The 13th movie (Wisdom of Friends) didn't have raptors as the main antagonist. It was instead a group of baryonyx. The 11th movie (Invasion of the Tinysauruses) did have some raptors and the tinysauruses did start tickling them.

[Malte279]

I think Kacie is right on this one. The LBT 11 raptors were not the last case of ticklish sharpteeth though. The LBT 12 spinosaur didn't bother to swallow when it had Guido inside its mouth but was ticklish enough to spit him out again when he tickled it with a feather.

[Animeboye]

Land Before Time II: The Great Valley Adventure
The first thing I noticed in the movie were the roman numbers saying "II" instead of "2" and although most people would simply pass around that, I really liked it. Finally a movie that doesn't number itself by regular arabic numbers!  
Ok, now moving to the actual review. To sum the movie up, it would be somewhat like this: bad plot, two dimensional characters, very stupid antagonists, somewhat bad animation and many absurd illogical moments.
So, what was good in the movie? Somehow it managed not to become boring and although it was quite forgetable, a decent kids movie it was
Rating 5/10

Firstly, I didn't think the animation was too bad, considering that this is a low budget, straight-to-video movie from 1994. I personally think the animation was good for what it was.

In response to the part about Ozzy and Strut being stupid antagonists, you do know that not every antagonist has to be diabolical and sinister, right? They can be goofy(like Ozzy and Strut), a friendly rival to the hero, they can even be trying to accomplish the same goal as the hero, just in a different way that makes them "the bad guy"(I suggest you look into a game called Tales of the Abyss as it is a shining example of this).

I'd also have to say that this movie having "absurd, illogical moments" is a pretty invalid arguement. You do know this is a kids movie about cartoon dinosaurs who talk and sing, right?

Your final statement contradicts itself: You basically listed all the negatives of this movie, neglecting to list any of the positives, and yet end the review saying, "it was decent". That confuses me. What did you think were the good parts of the movie? You said this movie had lame villains, a bad story and animation, and illogical moments. That's basically the entire movie. If you could, could you please elaborate on this?

One final thing, how exactly did the movie prevent itself from becoming boring? What parts intrigued you and made you want to watch more?