Pete's Dragon (2016)

And now for Disney's newer version of Pete's Dragon.

The Movie:

The 2016 version of Pete's Dragon was directed by David Lowery.  Whereas many of Disney's recent live-action fantasies had opened in the spring, this film instead was given a summer release.  Despite mostly positive reviews from critics, Pete's Dragon only performed moderately at the box-office.

Like the original, this Pete's Dragon tells the story of an orphan boy who has as his only friend a dragon named Elliot that can turn invisible.  And that's pretty much where the similarities end.  This version of Pete's Dragon is set in the Pacific Northwest and takes place in the early 1980s.  Young Pete is orphaned at age 5 when he is the only survivor of an automobile accident in the remote woods that kills his parents.  Pete is taken in and cared for by the dragon Elliot.  Six years later, a logging crew is making unauthorized deep intrusions into the forest.  Grace is a park ranger trying to keep a check on the project, which is headed by her boyfriend Jack.  Jack's brother Gavin leads the crew that is pushing too deep into the forest.  One morning, Grace and Jack both confront Gavin at the site, and Jack's daughter Natalie spots Pete and chases him into the forest.  Pete is accidentally knocked unconscious and brought into town.  Upon waking, Pete insists on returning to Elliot.  Grace, upon seeing Pete's drawing of Elliot is a dragon, seeks out advice from her father, who has long claimed to be the only person to have seen the legendary Millhaven Dragon.

I really like this movie, and I think it is a much better movie than the original.  It takes the basic plot outline of the original and turns it into a grand, fun fantasy-adventure family film.  Unlike the original, the story never bogs down.  And being a more serious take, the acting is much more grounded and a strength of the film.  Robert Redford as Grace's father brings a charm and dignity to his performance, and Bryce Dallas Howard (Grace), Wes Bentley (Jack), and Karl Urban (Gavin) all turn in solid jobs.  Much of this movie rests on its two child actors.  Oakes Fegley displays great range in his starring turn as Pete, and Oona Laurence, who first won accolades as one of the original quartet who rotated through the title role of Matilda on Broadway, is both sweet and sincere as Natalie.  As to the effects, this Elliot is done through CGI, and he looks good enough to be part of the real-world environment.

Although this version of Pete's Dragon is not a musical, there are several songs played over the action of the film, all of which have a folk music sound.  The film's signature songs are "Something Wild," performed by violinist Lindsey Sterling (in her usual upbeat style) and Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness, and "The Dragon Song," performed by Bonnie "Prince" Billy.  The later song is also sung in the movie by Oona Laurence/Natalie as a song her "dad used to sing" when seeing Pete's drawing of Elliot.  The score was composed by a relatively unknown Daniel Hart, and he does a marvelous job, providing music evokes a grand adventure.

Presence in the Parks:

In coordination with the release of the movie, WDW did host a few limited events at the resort, including a special screening at the Fort Wilderness Campground and a special activity packet at the Conservation Station in Animal Kingdom.  As far as I know, there have been no permanent addition to the parks from this movie.