I had watched this when it first came out, but thanks to a memory damaged by PTSD, I mostly just remembered that I enjoyed it, so I watched it again recently on Netflix.
To be honest, the special effects probably appeared a bit outdated even when it was first released, but if you're enjoying it as a family friendly fantasy, you'll probably overlook that, also. As a fantasy, there should be latitude given to a director as to how a show should look, what the ambiance is like, and what's acceptable or what's not. It's a simple, but good story about a couple of boys whose father dies in the plane crash that brings them to a land they've never heard of - Dinotopia. In the first installment, as they are learning the codes and beliefs of Dinotopia, it seemed to come on a little strong in trying to show how great the Mother Earth or We Are All One with the Animals, Plants and Earth theories are, but again, it's fantasy and good entertainment. That type of preaching lightened up in the last two installments, but we did see how beneficial it is when you treat everyone - humans, animals, environment - with respect and caring.
The personalities of the dinosaurs are fun/funny and very endearing. The sets are attractive and seem believable if you've been able to step inside this fantasy while watching it. Some of the growing up and personality changes of the characters seem too fast/easy to believe, but given the limited time for the story, that's understandable.
What I don't understand are some of the reviews, Trivia or Goofs sections where people are lecturing from their own vast stores of (imagined?) knowledge and criticizing shows that are fantasy, sci-fi, etc. for not being fact based about small issues. Not only is it not interesting to read, it's not helpful to others who want to know if they are going to see a fantasy or science fiction show that's interesting and entertaining - these are not documentaries! Someone was criticizing Dinotopia for having not given the correct name to a dinosaur - really? What did they think of the SkyBax? Another show I was watching recently criticized the security or lack thereof for a supercomputer and lectured on and on about how this would never happen in real life - again, really? It was a thriller, science fiction show and even though I understood what the visiting professor was saying, getting from scene to scene was accomplished more easily without setting the supercomputer up as it would be in real life. I don't see the mystery in that. Please, IMDb was once filled with nonsense through the forums and those were eliminated, if you're going to give reviews or report Trivia or Goofs, make sure they actually apply to the entertainment and you're not using them as a platform to attempt to show off your knowledge when it's really not relevant.
I recommend Dinotopia as a family friendly, fantasy that can be enjoyed just for the fun of it! 8/10.
To be honest, the special effects probably appeared a bit outdated even when it was first released, but if you're enjoying it as a family friendly fantasy, you'll probably overlook that, also. As a fantasy, there should be latitude given to a director as to how a show should look, what the ambiance is like, and what's acceptable or what's not. It's a simple, but good story about a couple of boys whose father dies in the plane crash that brings them to a land they've never heard of - Dinotopia. In the first installment, as they are learning the codes and beliefs of Dinotopia, it seemed to come on a little strong in trying to show how great the Mother Earth or We Are All One with the Animals, Plants and Earth theories are, but again, it's fantasy and good entertainment. That type of preaching lightened up in the last two installments, but we did see how beneficial it is when you treat everyone - humans, animals, environment - with respect and caring.
The personalities of the dinosaurs are fun/funny and very endearing. The sets are attractive and seem believable if you've been able to step inside this fantasy while watching it. Some of the growing up and personality changes of the characters seem too fast/easy to believe, but given the limited time for the story, that's understandable.
What I don't understand are some of the reviews, Trivia or Goofs sections where people are lecturing from their own vast stores of (imagined?) knowledge and criticizing shows that are fantasy, sci-fi, etc. for not being fact based about small issues. Not only is it not interesting to read, it's not helpful to others who want to know if they are going to see a fantasy or science fiction show that's interesting and entertaining - these are not documentaries! Someone was criticizing Dinotopia for having not given the correct name to a dinosaur - really? What did they think of the SkyBax? Another show I was watching recently criticized the security or lack thereof for a supercomputer and lectured on and on about how this would never happen in real life - again, really? It was a thriller, science fiction show and even though I understood what the visiting professor was saying, getting from scene to scene was accomplished more easily without setting the supercomputer up as it would be in real life. I don't see the mystery in that. Please, IMDb was once filled with nonsense through the forums and those were eliminated, if you're going to give reviews or report Trivia or Goofs, make sure they actually apply to the entertainment and you're not using them as a platform to attempt to show off your knowledge when it's really not relevant.
I recommend Dinotopia as a family friendly, fantasy that can be enjoyed just for the fun of it! 8/10.
