Film - Dumbo

Whereas most kids films I see are for children of all ages, this one is definitely just for the kids. There are no knowing jokes for the adults and no 80s or 90s music for us to recognise.

The story of how Dumbo the elephant with (spoiler alert) unusually large ears began to fly, is all here.Seeing it through the children’s eyes, in this case, the brother and sister who lost their mum and have just seen their father (Colin Farrell) return injured from war. The circus family they work for is being sold to a rich capitalist of the ruthless kind (Michael Keaton). He obviously promises them the earth and takes everything away.

Can we still call someone Dumbo, Well yes, it’s the name of the character we’ve all grown up with, so it’s fine.Dumbo 2019 is one cliché after another where any holding of breath is brief; just enough tension for the youngsters but nothing for the adults. So yes, definitely a kids film albeit an enjoyable one.

6½/10