My Little Pony: The Movie (Review) · 1:26am Oct 8th, 2017
Note: The main review contains several spoilers. However, I'll be putting a shorter review at the end that contains no spoilers.
The Plot
The problem with creating a movie based on any existing property—especially a TV show—is making it accessible to those who have very little or no knowledge of the original property. At the same time, the writers can't entirely ignore said property while crafting a story around it. The solution is to write the movie in such a way that it appeals to both fans and non-fans alike. This is a difficult feat, but it can be done and it makes for a rewarding experience. Fortunately, the writers managed to strike that perfect balance. No extensive knowledge—or any knowledge at all—of the show is needed to enjoy the movie. It is both a worthy extension of the series and its own standalone experience. The movie does make a few little references to things from the show, such as Rainbow Dash's enthusiasm for cider and Spike's crush on Rarity. But these references are made in such a way that the movie doesn't prioritize fans over non-fans. Nothing referenced in the movie requires anyone watching to have seen even five seconds of the series. However, this movie is perfect for introducing a skeptical friend or family member to the world of ponies. The storyline captures almost everything fans love about the show and compresses it into an hour and thirty minutes.
The storyline itself borrows heavily from the series, albeit not in a way that non-fans would notice. The scenes of ponies being imprisoned is very reminiscent of King Sombra. The Storm King's entire plan—stealing magic from ponies—mirrors Tirek's plan from the season four finale. Capper is reformed through the magic of friendship, which is both something the show did with Discord and a well-known cliché of animated family films. However, even though the movie does borrow heavily from the series in some respects, it manages to have its own identity. It is a far grander adventure than we'd ever be able to see in the actual series. The writers and animators took full advantage of the longer runtime to craft a much bigger story. It is the show we love so much, but done on a much bigger scale than would otherwise be possible.
The movie gets quite a bit darker than the series. One might expect Tempest Shadow's broken horn and scar to be the darkest aspects of the movie, but there are quite a few little scenes that rival such blatant suggestions of violence. Among the more disturbing parts of the movie, we are treated to what appears to be cow skeletons in the desert, someone offering to buy Twilight Sparkle's horn in a way that might have been a reference to Les Miserables, and of course the Storm King's fate. Adding on to the possible reference to Les Miserables, someone also offers to buy a pony’s hair. Most disturbing is the fact that there apparently exists a place in the world of technicolor ponies in which sapient beings—ponies and dragons—can be bought and sold like common farm animals.
One of the more unfortunate aspects of this movie is its last of effect on canon. The movie introduces a bunch of interesting lore and greatly expands the world. We are introduced to the hippogriffs, hippos, talking cats, etc. The movie also shows us that a unicorn with a broken horn is still capable of performing magic, albeit not as reliably. However, as the movie is meant to be standalone, none of this excellent world-building and lore will ever be canon in the actual series. If this wasn't a movie, it would do well as a season-spanning arc of sorts.
The Storm King's death was unexpected, although his defeat was inevitable. What could they have done with the Storm King? Lock him up in Tartarus like Tirek? Turn him to stone like Discord? Reform him like Discord? Well, they did end up turning him to stone. But I don't think anyone expected him to fall off the edge of the balcony and break into pieces. That was an unexpectedly dark way for a villain to go it. It's nothing compared to some of the more famous villain deaths in family movies over the years, but it was brutal in comparison to what we've seen in the actual series. The only thing that comes close is King Sombra. Even then, King Sombra was technically made of shadow, therefore he didn't actually “die”. The Storm King literally died on screen seconds after being turned to stone by his own magic.
Overall, the movie had excellent pacing and was very rich in story. It never felt rushed or cramped with all the story and characters it had to fit into an hour and a half. This movie feels much longer than its actual runtime, yet it wasn't slow-paced by any means.
The Characters
The problem with movies—especially kids' movies, as they tend to be shorter than two hours—is that there is only so much one can cram into the runtime. The main advantage of a TV series is that it has an unlimited amount of time to flesh out and develop characters, develop the world, and keep the audience engaged. Taking all of that and shoving it into an hour or two hours is difficult. Fortunately, this movie spends the exact right amount of time introducing both fans and non-fans to the characters we've all come to love. The movie manages to sum up the main aspects of Twilight Sparkle's personality in less than five minutes of screen time. It does this in even less time with the other main characters. In a single exchange between Twilight and Spike, the movie characterizes Twilight as a responsible pony prone to over-thinking and Spike as the more down-to-earth “straight man” of the pair. It does this a little later with an exchange between Applejack and Rarity, this time characterizing Rarity as a bit of a perfectionist and Applejack as more practical. While the characters' personalities are a little deeper than the movie makes them out to be, the writers did a good job giving the audience the basics.
Appearance-wise, the Storm King resembles a more intimidating version of Tirek. Personality-wise, he is more of a traditional hammy villain whose not very good at being evil on his own. He's a little reminiscent of Ludo from Star vs. the Forces of Evil, although he is much more competent. On his own, the Storm King might come off as nothing special. It is his contrast with Tempest Shadow that makes him such a perfect character. He's competent for the most part, but the way he acts ruins any intimidation factor he might have. By comparison, Tempest Shadow is a truly intimidating presence. She oozes malevolence every time she's on screen. Everything from the angles to the lighting serve to make her look intimidating. This is probably why the movie focuses on her more than it does on the Storm King for the first few acts. It isn't until the final act that he really comes into play as a legitimate threat. Was the Storm King at any point intended to be the “main” villain? While his arrival ushers in the conflict and his actions lead the plot to its glorious finale, it is Tempest Shadow who receives more attention. She is given an actual back story, while the Storm King it curiously lacking. Even Tirek was given an actual back story to explain his actions, yet the Storm King is simply there. He has a personality and a lot of great scenes, but he is lacking in character when compared to Tempest Shadow.
Despite having little screen time, Songbird Serenade had some great scenes. The one with her bodyguards comes to mind. Perhaps her best scene in the movie—not including her performance at the end—was her singing while imprisoned by the Storm King's henchmen. The scene sticks out because it is reminiscent of a very similar one from the animated series Steven Universe involving a character named Sapphire. In fact, both Songbird Serenade and Sapphire have hair covering their eyes. While this probably wasn't at all a reference, it was still a nice little scene. It's unfortunate that we probably won't be seeing Songbird in the actual series. Nevertheless, Songbird's design and voice are spectacular. Sia did an amazing job.
Although it is hardly the standard nowadays, Spike abuse used to be one of the most common aspects of the show. In the early days of the show, he was often used as both a literal and figurative punching bag. There are many perceived explanations for this harsh treatment of Spike, including the writers simply having no idea what to do with him. Fortunately, despite Spike getting more screen time than usual, the movie treats him well. He is not subject to any physical abuse or laughs at his expense, nor is he treated like servant. Granted, Spike does very little until the final confrontation. He is just there for most of the movie, seldom commenting or drawing any real attention to himself. However, Spike's ability to breathe fire leads to Capper using him as a living flamethrower. In an unexpectedly brutal scene, we actually see several of the Storm King's guards being set on fire. An overhead shot shows us one guard falling over and being completely engulfed in flames. As stated before, this movie is a lot darker than the series.
There is one important thing to mention in regard to characterization: Twilight Sparkle acting out of character. Particularly, Twilight using her unknowing friends as a distraction in order to steal the pearl. This blatant deception seems very unlike her. Rather than trying to make friends with the hippogriffs, she decides to steal from them. It immediately comes off as a cheap tactic to incite conflict and separate Twilight from the group. On the other hand, this isn't the first time Twilight has done something rash. Episodes like Lesson Zero show us that Twilight can make bad decisions under pressure. She—as a certain song pointed out—is not flawless. Nevertheless, this friendship-related conflict felt a little forced.
The Animation
The movie opens with an absolutely gorgeous shot of the clouds. The quality of the animation doesn't decrease even slightly from that first moment. The animation is lot smoother than it is in the show. The ponies' faces are much more expressive and energetic. It's not Disney-grade animation by any stretch of the imagination, but everything in this movie is beautiful. The backgrounds are wonderfully detailed and some of them are simply breathtaking. It is surprisingly rare to see beautifully animated water, but this movie has some of the best.
The Music
One of the things that separates this series from others is its emphasis on memorable songs. From Disney-esque numbers like “Luna's Future” to more carefree and catchy ditties like “Super Duper Party Pony”, this series is packed to the brim with just about every genre. Great songs have become a staple of the show. While the movie lacks the genre diversity the series has mastered, the songs are still what we've come to expect from our beloved pony show.
The opening song and the stellar visuals come together to create a beautiful opening sequence. Hype increases throughout this sequence as the animators show off their skills and we have our first taste of the soundtrack. It's a great opening moment for the movie that gives us a hint at the quality we'll be in for without introducing the conflict prematurely.
The second song (“We Got This”) is charmingly upbeat and catchy, although the lyrics are slightly lacking. It's always nice to hear Ashleigh Ball's singing voice. Songs like “Days Gone By” and “I'll Fly” have shown us that Ball has some amazing talent when it comes to singing. This isn't too surprising given that she's in a band. Any song involving her is worth listening to on repeat.
“I'm the Friend You Need” is more of a miss than a hit. It's a decent song, but not really worth an extra listen. What really makes this sequence worth watching is the visuals. This whole movie feels very Disney-esque—the songs, the animation, the character designs, etc.--and the visuals during Capper's song are a prime example of this.
“Time to be Awesome” has a slow beginning, but it picks up nicely and quickly moves into sing-a-long territory. It's an energetic little piece that would do well as a Rainbow Dash solo. Like the opening song and “We Got This”, “Time to be Awesome” feels like a song from the actual series.
“One Little Thing” is an absurdly catchy song that perfectly fits Pinkie. The underwater visuals combined with the upbeat vocals make for a wonderful sequence. This is a song that deserves as many remixes and covers as possible.
Tempest Shadow might just be the best character in the movie. Her design, her voice, and her unexpectedly dark back story make for an immensely well-written and well-acted character. To top it all off, her villain song is amazing. The instrumental sends chills down my spine and the vocals are beautiful. “Open Up Your Eyes” is reason enough to buy the soundtrack. It's reminiscent of songs from the series like “Luna's Future” with its dark undertone.
Naturally, Sia's song “Rainbow” is a highlight of the movie. Sia's performance at the end is great. It's as good an ending—or semi-ending—song as “Shine Like Rainbows” from the end of The Friendship Games.
One thing all these songs have in common regardless of where they're ranked on the scale of Good to Bad are the amazing instrumentals. The background music and the instrumentals in this movie are amazing. All of it sounds epic and vaguely reminiscent of music from an RPG. This style of music perfectly fits the movie. It'd be worth listening to the instrumentals on their own just to get the full experience.
Conclusion
I give the movie a 9/10. An excellent piece of cinema that is worth watching multiple times. It's not perfect by any means, but it is a worthy edition to what has slowly become a truly extraordinary animated TV series.
Spoiler-Free Review
My Little Pony: The Movie does a few things wrong, but it does most things right. It is essentially a condensed version of the TV series we've all come to love. It takes everything we adore about the series and compresses it into an hour and a half. Rather than working to the series' detriment, this movie accurately sums up why the series has become so popular with adult fans of animation. It hits on everything the actual series does correctly—good songs, great villains, etc.--while also taking advantage of the more lax restrictions that come with a feature-length film versus a TV-Y animated series. It manages to fit an amazing amount of story into its relatively short runtime—an hour and thirty minutes—without sacrificing pacing. If judged as its own entity completely independent from the original property, it remains a great piece of cinema. This movie contains several small references that only fans of the show will understand, but it does not alienate non-fans by appealing exclusively to those who've watched the show from the beginning. It works as a standalone film that can be used to introduce someone hesitant or curious to the world of pastel ponies and as a great family film that requires no prior knowledge to enjoy.
While the conflict isn't handled or introduced as well as it should be and the movie does borrow heavily from the series in some ways, it is still worth a watch. The storyline is great, the animation is gorgeous, the songs are memorable, and the voice acting is phenomenal. Hopefully we'll be getting a sequel in a few years. 9/10.
Do you think the Storm King is actually dead?
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The after credits scene implies that he's somehow alive (because, you know, kids' movie and everything). But for all intents and purposes, he should be considered as dead as King Sombra.
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Yay.
Nice thing about a cartoon though is that anything can happen. The writers may one day bring him back somehow no matter what the ending showed.
MLP FIM is a very good pre school show and the only one I really like. good characters, humor, morals, storylines(most of the time), nice music/voice acting and colourful animation. favorite episodes are lesson zero, sleepless in Ponyvlie, perfect pear, crusaders of the lost mark, pinkie pride, twilight's kingdom, amending fences, gaullet of fire, Royal Problem, The mane Attraction and Sisterhoove social. It's cute, funny, heart warming and entertaining. Watch all latest movies and TV shows for free on Cinema apk for Android.