Abominable

Universal Pictures | Release Date: September 27, 2019

5.9	USER SCORE Mixed or average reviews based on 105 Ratings

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Creeper3455Sep 30, 2019

Man,these animated redheads are getting hotter and hotter,aren’t they… Also,reminder that the best “character with dad struggles” (in space) movie is still playing in theaters now in Dolby Cinema and IMAX. Hurry before Joker rolls in a beat.Man,these animated redheads are getting hotter and hotter,aren’t they… Also,reminder that the best “character with dad struggles” (in space) movie is still playing in theaters now in Dolby Cinema and IMAX. Hurry before Joker rolls in a beat. Anywho.

For the longest time,I somehow had this long sense of dread waiting for Abominable. Judging from the trailer,it looked like the worse version of the Animated Roadtrip movie with a little ET,with some bizarre aesthetics and the weirdest character design I’ve seen for a Yeti that is purposely made for merchandise and cuteness factor (as Universal’s braindead Executives wanted). BUT,it had the benefit of having Jill Culton back. Yeah! The Pixar veteran and director of my kind of “Thrill-A-Minute” movie,Open Season,which is kinda criminally underrated to this day.
So I pull the Jurassic World 2 (where I would go to hell if I ever spent a dime to see a dead-on-arrival Franchise Movie or an original idea from Universal,so I go full-on pirate mode),I sit on my bed and finally see it,curious about how it’s going to turn out to be,and,while it’s not terrible (or good in that matter),I was kinda surprised,as well as enjoying myself through some of its runtime. The best thing I can say is that Culton is trying her best to make sure you care about these characters,their goals and the journey they’re taking,predictability or not. It definitely benefits of having a pretty aesthetic that,although still crowded with problems,manages to still give the movie a unique look. Forgettable? Yeah,sure.
And it has its moments where I’m sure the kids will have a chuckle or two,since it’s sort of hilarious in “several” moments.
And Everest (the Yeti) is amusing. It’s so not the bumbling doof the trailers set it out to be,as he,at least,has some range of emotions besides being just another Minion that Universal needed to **** out to make sure that “It’s cute and marketable”.
Unfortunately,that’s where my goods stop,since the rest is pretty questionable,to say the least. Sure,the Animation is stellar,but the Character Design was kinda bizarre. Like,I’m not joking when I think Yi (played by Agents Of SHIELD’s Chloe Bennet) is basically Collette from Ratatouille,but if someone squashed her head to “Hey,Arnold!” lengths,and the main baddie,although covered with a pretty cute twist,still looks like Charles Muntz with a more cartoonish head.
And the fact that it’s set in China makes it all the more hateful for me,because again,while gorgeous,still feels like Universal trying to make a quick buck from China (which is apparently working,because we’re dumb idiots,right?). Basically that whole 3rd Act from The Meg,only if it lasted 1h30’ because of CASH.
And the best way I can see this could be like Okja,the Bong Joon Ho movie that has similar things in common. I wouldn’t give a flying hell about it,but hey. I’m pretty sure it has its Audience. So yeah. Still “A Universal Animated Movie”,but not as bad as the title sets you out to think.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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AavvySep 29, 2019

Awesome movie. The best animated movie till now showing us the way to protect animals

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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TVJerryOct 4, 2019

This animated adventure takes place in China, where a young trio sets out across their vast country to return a young Yeti to his Himalayan home. Nothing about this movie or the characters are exceptional, but it's simple charms and livelyThis animated adventure takes place in China, where a young trio sets out across their vast country to return a young Yeti to his Himalayan home. Nothing about this movie or the characters are exceptional, but it's simple charms and lively energy keep it sufficiently entertaining for young minds. The script and the performances are pretty standard, but there are some lovely moments of animated fantasy.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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JLuis_001Oct 4, 2019

Nothing new, you have to be honest about that, but its quality is stable and noteworthy. And I say that because this film wouldn't have to have bet on anything considering its target audience and yet manages to go forward with its proposal.Nothing new, you have to be honest about that, but its quality is stable and noteworthy. And I say that because this film wouldn't have to have bet on anything considering its target audience and yet manages to go forward with its proposal.

It was fine.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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Compi24Oct 15, 2019

Whether you've seen it in another film from the same studio (i.e. "How To Train Your Dragon" or "Home") or any other family film in general (i.e. "Missing Link," "Lilo & Stitch" or "E.T. The Extra Terrestrial") you've definitely seen thisWhether you've seen it in another film from the same studio (i.e. "How To Train Your Dragon" or "Home") or any other family film in general (i.e. "Missing Link," "Lilo & Stitch" or "E.T. The Extra Terrestrial") you've definitely seen this story before. That aside though, this is still a treat for the eyes -- albeit intermittently, and only during the sequences where it knows it has to be -- with an undeniably cute mythical beast at the center of the proverbial stage. I only wish that the narrative stylings and humor were as well realized as some of the set pieces and character designs are.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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BrunoVn00Dec 11, 2019

Wow I didn't realize that Dreamworks re-released Missing Link! There was just a 5 month gap!
Wait, this isn't Missing Link, right?
To be fair, while it has the same done to death concept as Missing Link (the characters discover an exoticWow I didn't realize that Dreamworks re-released Missing Link! There was just a 5 month gap!
Wait, this isn't Missing Link, right?

To be fair, while it has the same done to death concept as Missing Link (the characters discover an exotic creature that is trying not to be captured by the villains) it tried to be something different by giving it a "fantasy" twist. The Yeti (whose name is Everest) seems to have like powers or something like that. It seems that the writers thought that they had a good idea on paper, but didn't know how to execute it. So, they executed it in a really bland and formulaic way. I can't say this movie is totally predictable because there were some things that I actually didn't see coming, but those things were really dumb.

First of all: The visuals. They look fine. I thought that at times they looked a bit cheap but I forgive it because this was made with a pretty small budget compared to other Dreamworks movies like HTTYD 3. It might be the least expensive Dreamworks movie since Captain Underpant's insanely low budget (for a mainstream production). There are some nice colors and I think that the presentation is one of the few things I genuinely liked. I wasn't a big fan of the character design however, because the characters, honestly, look like rejects from other movies. Like, the protagonist (Yi) looked like an unused design for Gogo from Big Hero 6. I don't know, I think that the character design is, not bad, but really nothing special and forgettable.

The actual characters...Well...They have no characters. No motivations,nothing. Yi might be the only character that had SOME depth, but in the end even she was really underdeveloped. The rest of the characters are just one note. There's the fat kid who is in the movie just to be annoying with his annoying voice and then there's the other guy, who is like very metrosexual. The generic egocentric guy who only cares about his personal image and has probably some of the worst dialogue. He frequently says things like "Uh this photo isn't getting enough likes" or "Hashtag selfie" or those cringy sh*t. Writers, please, make sure to avoid using any "Internet" terms unless is essential to the plot, because, seriously, the movie won't age well. The villains are just insane. One of them has absolutely no motivation. Like, why does he want Everest? Because he wants to have a collection of rare creatures of something? Even Charles Muntz from UP who also had a similar motivation of "get the creature" was more fleshed out because he actually had a personality. This movie's villains don't have any character. Again, just paper thin characters.

The writing is really bad. Well, it's not like, Arctic Dogs or Uglydolls level of bad, but it is filled with tons of plot conviniences and really bad dialogue. The story, like I said, had really stupid plot conviniences. Everything seems to happen just because the script says so. Many events in the movie don't make sense and don't feel natural. The movie failed to make me be invested in the story and to care about the characters. Everest's powers seem to work just because the plot demands it. I never saw the limits of his powers he could just do whatever he wanted apparently.

Some of the music was decent, but there were times in which the movie used licensed music and...It just didn't work. I start to disagree in the use of licensed music in movies, because there are a lot of movies where they make wrong use of it. By that I mean that sometimes movies put music that doesn't fit the tone or the scene at all and probably did that because the music sounded good. Again, writers and directors: DON'T use licensed music unless the lyrics and music genre feel appropriate.

Overall, I don't consider this "wasted potential" because, honestly, I don't know how to make a great movie out of this done to death concept. What I think it could've been more cool is to make the movie be set in like a village outside the city and make Yi like an orphan. I would've liked that better because Yi's family is basically pointless in the story and the way they end up outside the city is just stupid.

In conclusion: Below average movie. It looks nice but everything else, while not bad, is just...Meh. I never thought I would say this but Missing Link is way better. I don't like Missing Link because it is also a pretty mediocre movie, but at least that one was so much more entertaining and had some good humor, but this one...Just felt like a waste of time.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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bokchoi1018Oct 15, 2019

A good family movie that anyone can go and have fun, and receive some heartfelt messages.

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

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