Land Before Time Retrospective #2
Released: 1994
Even after falling in love with the first movie and becoming a part of the Land Before Time fandom, I was initially reluctant to check out the sequels, despite distantly remembering a few of them from my childhood. In part it was because I knew they often get a bad rap compared to the original movie, even though I usually prefer to just check things out for myself and not read too much into what everyone else thinks. But it was that, combined with the fact that I also knew the LBT sequels were lighter in tone than the original movie, and that they were musicals too, which the original was not. More generally, the original was such a magical, touching, ‘lightning in a bottle’ experience for me, and I was skeptical that any of the other films would be able to replicate all of those feels for me.
But at the same time, I was still curious about the sequels. I loved the characters from the first film so much that I wanted to be able to spend more time with them. A couple of the forum members also convinced me that I should still give the sequels a chance, which I likewise realized would be nice so that I could openly discuss them with the rest of the community (which would also free me from having to worry about spoilers). And I am a completionist, so it was almost certainly inevitable that I would end up seeing them eventually.
Soon after, I ordered the 14-film DVD set from Amazon so I could begin what would ultimately turn into a massive retrospective on the entire franchise. But for now, how did I feel about the second film specifically? Here is my forum post about it…
(A note for clarification that the “Gang of Five” refers to the original five main characters of the series; Littlefoot, Cera, Ducky, Petrie, and Spike.)
So I finally got around to seeing the second, third, and fourth films a few days ago. I’ll post my thoughts on #3 and #4 in their respective threads. I have quite a lot to say about the second film alone.
Unlike many of the sequels which I’ve never watched, even as a kid, this one I know I have seen before. Although I had forgotten the vast majority of it, even more than how much I forgot of the first film. Here, I remembered the part where Littlefoot and his friends fell into the Sinking Sands and were rescued and get glared at by their parents, and I vaguely remember Ozzy and Strut getting chased away by Chomper’s parents at the end, but that’s pretty much it. So this was essentially like watching the film brand new.
Quote from Gentle Sharptooth: The fact LBT II added musical numbers (love them or hate them, I love them) made this installment immediately distanced from the original.
That was the most jarring thing for me, especially with the first song coming right at the very beginning. I’ll say right away that the musical numbers were my least favourite part. Granted, I’ve never been the biggest fan of musicals anyway, so I’m not sure if the filmmakers could’ve done much to increase their appeal to me. While I wouldn’t go so far as to say I hated them, they were cheesy and unnecessary. They added nothing to the story or the characters, in my opinion, and could just as easily have been removed. I get the impression that Universal put the songs in because it was what Disney was doing and Disney films were so successful.
But the first LBT didn’t need singing in it to be successful. And in fact it was an amazing movie, so why were the songs needed in the sequels? I’ll try to keep my ranting about the singing dinos to a minimum as I review the rest of the series, but I decided I might as well get that out of my system now.
Anyway…
I was impressed at how good the animation quality is for it being direct-to-video. The whole film is pleasant to look at. I did notice the colour palette is brighter and more vibrant than before. It makes sense considering they’re living in the Great Valley now, but it’s also reflective of how the film itself has a gentler tone than the first.
In response to some of the above points, it didn’t bother me that the Gang of Five was being immature by trying to cross the Sinking Sands. Especially since Cera was the most determined to do it, which seems in-character for her anyway, and the rest of them were just following after her. They are still little kids, after all. If anything, surviving the tar pit and their dangerous adventure from the first movie, only to still be treated like “hatchlings,” may have been precisely why they felt the need to prove themselves. That, and I think they underestimated just how dangerous the Sinking Sands actually were.
It was heartwarming to see that Cera’s character development from the first film stuck and she has become much nicer, and much more accepting of her friends, while still having a bit of an edge to her. It shows that she was a good kid all along deep down.
The overall plot was pretty good and held my interest. And the Gang themselves are still endearing and fun to watch. If anything buoyed the film, they did. I mentioned in my introduction post that I was apprehensive about seeing the sequels, but at the same time I was curious to see what further adventures Littlefoot and his friends would get into, and the film did deliver there. And I am pleased that it was an adventure, full of action and danger.
Ozzy and Strut were kind of obnoxious, and underwhelming compared to the terrifying Sharptooth from the first film. This, combined with the musical numbers, made it hard to get into the film initially, although thankfully it picked up in the second half. Still, Ozzy and Strut didn’t feel all that necessary from a storytelling standpoint. Yes, they were the main villains, but really, Chomper and his parents made for a much stronger narrative hook. Despite their smaller role, Chomper’s parents managed to be a lot more intimidating. I wish that Ozzy and Strut had either been written to be more serious, and/or been downplayed (or even removed) so as to give more focus to Chomper and his family.
One thing that struck me as odd is the fact that Littlefoot was the most insistent about being the one to care for baby Chomper. If anything, it seems like he should’ve been the most apprehensive about it, considering how he lost his own mother to a Sharptooth. Related to that, I feel Littlefoot should still be having some PTSD over his mother’s death and his Sharptooth encounters from the previous film, especially since this seems to take place shortly after the first film, and especially since he encounters two more adult Sharpteeth here. That’s an aspect of Littlefoot’s psyche I wish had been explored. If I ever do a fanfic novelization of the film, that’s something I’d include.
That aside, however, Littlefoot’s relationship with Chomper is genuinely endearing. I also enjoyed how the portrayal of Sharpteeth from the first film was completely subverted. The two new adult Sharpteeth here initially seem so much like the Sharptooth from before. But then when we find out they’re Chomper’s mama and papa, it establishes that, yes, Sharpteeth have families too, and it goes a long way to help humanize them (er, dinosaur-ize… whatever).
Ultimately, I have conflicted feelings. Overall I thought it was a decent first sequel with some strong aspects to it. But at the same time, considering that the original is my favourite animated film of all time, this one left me feeling disappointed and underwhelmed in other areas. I knew going into it that it wasn’t as dark and gritty as the original, nor was I expecting it to be as good as the original… but I wanted it to be. The first film is just so much more heart-wrenching and has so much more emotional weight.
I’ve seen a couple people say that, of all the sequels, this is the one that most closely resembles the first film, and I think there’s both good and bad things about this. On one hand, the parts where it feels like the first film were the parts I enjoyed the most. But on the other hand, the first film did nearly everything better, and I occasionally found myself longing for the first film instead. Perhaps it’s for the better that the third film went in a somewhat different direction.
As of right now, I’m probably going to give The Great Valley Adventure 5 & 1/3 out of 8 tree stars. (Originally I rated it 5 out of 8 tree stars, but I later bumped up my rating a little.)
