We're Back: Dinosaur's Story (1993)

Four dinosaurs take up a time-traveling scientist (Walter Cronkite) on his offer to get smart by eating "brain grain," and it's off to the 20th century in this animated kids movie. But there's no real terror in the streets here, as the newly cerebral, English-speaking prehistoric beasts hit the New York City pavement in search of a museum proprietor (Julia Childs). On the way they befriend a couple of kids from the opposite sides of the tracks, get rooked into performing in a demented circus run by the scientist's evil brother, and learn something about friendship. John Goodman voices the narrator apatosaurus, and is joined by such luminaries as Rhea Perlman, Martin Short, and Jay Leno. Not only did Steven Spielberg take some time off from his other dinosaur project of 1993 to executive-produce this 65-minute flick, but John Patrick Shanley (Oscar-winner for Moonstruck) wrote the script and Thomas Dolby ("She Blinded Me with Science") wrote and Little Richard belts out the movie's rocking signature tune "Roll Back the Rock." There's plenty of humor for adults and lots of dinosaur action for the kids, but the morbid big-top subplot may spook younger children. (Ages 4 and older) --Kimberly Heinrichs Amazon.com

One of my favorites

I was 5 when it came out, and it instantly became my favorite movie. For some reason, this movie popped into my head the other day, and i decided I had to get it. I can't wait to see it again. I just hope it is as good as I remember it to be. November 17, 2008

They Came Back, But Didn't Stay

Not unlike everything else produced under Steven Spielberg's Amblimation company, "We're Back! A Dinosaur's Story" exists nowadays only as a VHS tape in the libraries of those who were lucky enough to disregard the poor reviews and catch the movie after its 1993 release...but even more so than "Fievel Goes West" or "Balto", the story of four dinosaurs in New York seems forsaken by popular animation history, with more people not even having heard about the movie than not. While the film does have its faults, this is a lamentable fate for a feature that puts to shame a lot of what's on the market today.

"We're Back!" tells the story of four dinosaurs - Rex (John Goodman, "Monsters Inc."), Elsa (Felicity Kendall, "Solo"), Dweeb (Charles Fleischer, "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"), and Woog - who gain intelligence with the help of the benevolent, time-traveling scientist Captain Neweyes (Walter Cronkite) so they may fulfill the wishes of children across the world. Dropped off in New York City, they swiftly meet up with Louie and Cecilia (Yeardley Smith, "The Simpsons") - two young runaways from opposite sides of the tracks - and find themselves fleeing from wary grown-ups as they search for the Museum of Natural History...only to find themselves in the sights of the evil brother of the Captain: spooky ringmaster Professor Screweyes (Kenneth Mars, "Young Frankenstein"), who has sinister plans for the dinosaurs...

"We're Back!" is a children's movie, first and foremost, and was most likely aimed at kids no older than nine or ten. In other words, there's little action (opposed to adventure), few scary parts, and completely inoffensive humor ("The Lion King" was racier than this); problems are solved by talking rather than fighting, and you don't have to be told to know from the start that there's going to be a happy ending. This rather harmless approach carries over to the characters themselves: the dinosaurs are very cuddly, and generally everybody is proved to be very warm-hearted...almost too warm-hearted for me, and probably also for anybody else who grew up watching animated films where peril was the middle act.

The production, overall, is very good. In addition to Goodman, Fleischer, Smith, Kendall, and Cronkite, the cast boasts Jay Leno, Martin Short ("Treasure Planet"), Julia Child, and Blaze Berdahl ("Ghostwriter") in supporting roles, creating one of the most unique voice ensembles ever gathered for a film, and they all do a good job with their roles.
Though it retains the trademark big-budget style prevalent in "Fievel" and could still go toe-to-toe with a Disney movie's visuals, the animation has a flaw: the outlines of the features on the human characters have a trend of stuttering inbetween frames - making a nose, mouth, or pair of eyes look less defined from one second to the next. It's not a debilitating error, but is a bit disappointing to watch happen repeatedly.

What the film does hold in its favor, though, is its ability to inspire the inner child. Consider: who has not dreamed of having a special friend that no one else had, or seeing a real dinosaur in your own backyard...or even having a dinosaur as a special friend? That wonderful ability to warm hearts that Spielberg gave up when he tackled films like "Minority Report" is well at work here, with New York City seeming as magical a place as any wonderland before it became associated with modern unpleasantries. The film pulls off the nostalgia factor incredibly - taking us back to a time before animation turned to 3D and we had "Shrek" shoved down our throats.
I'm not sure how much this means to other people, but it saved the movie for me.

In all, it's not difficult to see why "We're Back!" didn't do very well when it was first released, but why it remains so largely unremembered continues to perplex me. Disregard the uninspired stigma that comes with a three-star rating and know that the film's strengths outweigh its faults effectively, and that the movie serves as a secret opus for fans of classical animation. Don't deprive yourself - give it a look. November 3, 2008

Jurassic Park for the kiddies

Satisfactory adaption of Spielberg's interest in dinoland, but this time the dinosaurs are not confined to an island zoo. Instead, they time travel to the heart of New York, just in time for Thanksgiving, and secretly hiding among the huge floats and balloons.
Enter two lovable children who befriend the dinosaurs and stumble into the evil clutches of Professor Sreweyes Eccentric Circus located in Central Park. The dinosaurs come to the rescue!
Not a "Disney classic" type film, but it is cute fun and didn't lose my interest. Although the last half may be dark and gloomier than the first part, it doesn't seem to me to be any more traumatic than the real Disney villians true nature or force.
Although some big names are voiced here in bit parts, I can see where it may have some inside jokes from producers for casting Jay Leno or Julia Child. After all, the tale does take place during Thanksgiving holiday, and having Julia is like having a real chef in the house. (Ha,ha).
November 14, 2007

satisfied customer

got this for my 3 yr old an he says Thank You so much for being quick with his new best freinds May 12, 2007

scary for little kids

I saw this movie in theatres when it came out; I was six years old at the time (1993). While I enjoyed it, the middle and ending scared me to death. It gave me nightmares and was scarier than the Neverending Story, which was also pretty frightening. I would recommend the first Land Before Time instead, since there are no children who turn into animals in that movie. January 11, 2007

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