May 18, 2024

Review of "Thelma the Unicorn" Summary: Netflix Flicks provide fun for kids

Netflix's latest original animation feature - musical comedy Thelma The Unicorn - was launched on the platform yesterday.

The film marks the feature-length animated directorial debut of both Napoleon Dynamite director Jared Hess and Unicity showrunner Lin Wan.

Thelma The Unicorn is based on the children's book of the same name by Australian author Aaron Blabey.

Thelma Unicorn follows a little-time pony whose dream of becoming a music star is given an unexpected boost when she transforms into a unicorn.

Mikros Animation produced the animation with the Montreal Studio as the lead shop. Hess wrote a film with his wife, Jerusha Hess. Michael Lester (head of the story), Trevor Dalmer (production designer), Paul J. Sullivan (Art Director), Dennis Couchon (Head of character animation), Guillaume Arantes (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), John Lester (co-head of character animation), Major creative credits include Powell (music) and Edie Ichioka (editor). The film is produced by Pam Cote (Mulan, Scoob).Blabey and Patrick Hughes are executive producers.

Usually at this point we'll jump into the review summary, but we have to point out that there are very few reviews for the film. At the time of this writing, Rotten Tomatoes has exactly 10 listings, which is an unusually low number for a new production by the most prolific US producer of animation features. As a result, we included reviews from Youtubers for the first time, but this is true and more insightful than any of the reviews written.

Indeed, there could be an argument that we have reached peak film critics. Rotten Tomatoes has more movie reviewers than ever before, but most animation features simply don't get the critical attention they deserve. Recent releases like Mars Express and Chicken for Linda. It is largely ignored by the significant mainstream of the United States with only a dozen or two reviewers who care to check out each movie. The system is broken and no longer plays a deliberate role for the audience or the film's distributors.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand: Unicorn Thelma. A handful of critics who have seen the film seem to agree that what you see is what you get. It provides fun for kids coupled with a positive message and does it well. It currently has a 70% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Next Best Picture's Daniel Howat offers a positive take on the film and compares the animation style to lighting, but if you're aiming to make a commercially successful product,

Thelma The Unicorn is the movie's delightful glitter bomb. Made for Netflix, the animation is reminiscent of Illumination's big, clean, bright colors, with characters that look weird at every turn. Many of [Jared]Hess's previous films feel like live-action comics in some ways, so his transition to animation has been pretty seamless. A touch of absurdity is not for everyone, but they balance precious stories in the mind of the film. It's a sweet, funny story that can help kids have a little more balanced view of stardom.

Barry Levitt of the Daily Beast has a less penetrating take on the film, pointing out visual contradictions:

For adults, enough animation here to enjoy is mostly fun. The animal character looks good, and Thelma's complex textured hair is beautifully designed. But the background is flat, lacking dimensions, the work of a larger crowd is not impressive, and the human character is changing the degree of off-putting. Some of this is obviously due to design, and some are not.

Thelma leads to an exploration of the price of fame that gets thrown into the world of pop stardom, and thankfully for how hard it is to maintain authenticity, this film is often an entertaining one and is best when inclined to the absurdity that fuels Hess and King's other works. There's a particularly strong running gag featuring obsessed fans, and a shocking dark joke about the urn stands out.

Hollywood Reporter Frank Scheck generally gives a favorable impression, but criticizes the third act:

Like so many animated films, Unicorn Thelma sacrifices some of its cunning wit to a cluttered visual frenzy designed to arouse a small fry who may be overly busy with its final act and apparently succumbing to a sugar crush. But for most of its running time, it's a small-scale pleasure balancing quirky humor and hearty emotions to an excellent effect.

Adrian Horton of The Guardian thought the film was a cut above the usual standards of this type of film.

Netflix's new animated family film, Thelma The Unicorn, has a lot of successful tricks for kids.Glitter and cotton candy pink, a pile of manure jokes, a mini-album of catchy original songs, a unicorn that turned into an adorable hero pony in its titular song. But perhaps its greatest asset is the parable of fame, which is easy enough for a young mind reared on a mobile phone to grasp, while the Red Carpet reference

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This is enough for films of this kind: Worthy protagonists, some catchy enough to sing and dance, and in a sea of family content that is often not annoying not distracted by it all unicorns, Thelma The Unicorn most often surf over the crowd.

And here's this review from Youtuber DazzReviews. He goes into much more detail than any of the print reviewers, and sometimes it feels like he's reviewing a movie that's completely different from the other reviewers, but I also came away with a much better idea of the tone and texture of the film than reading any of the print reviewers: