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Pete's Dragon (2016 film)

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For the 1977 film, see Pete's Dragon (1977 film).

Pete's Dragon
Theatrical release poster
Directed byDavid Lowery
Screenplay by
  • David Lowery
  • Toby Halbrooks
Based onPete's Dragon
by Malcolm Marmorstein
Produced byJames Whitaker
Starring
CinematographyBojan Bazelli
Edited byLisa Zeno Churgin
Music byDaniel Hart
Production
companies
Distributed byWalt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Release dates
  • August 8, 2016 (2016-08-08) (El Capitan Theatre)
  • August 12, 2016 (2016-08-12) (United States)
Running time
103 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$65 million[2]
Box office$143.7 million[2]

Pete's Dragon is a 2016 American fantasy adventure film directed by David Lowery, written by Lowery and Toby Halbrooks, and produced by James Whitaker. The film is a live-action remake of Disney's 1977 live-action/traditionally animated musical film of the same name, although the 2016 live-action film is not a musical. The film stars Bryce Dallas Howard, Oakes Fegley, Wes Bentley, Karl Urban, Oona Laurence, and Robert Redford.[3] The film tells the story of an orphaned feral boy who befriends a dragon in the Pacific Northwest, and the ensuing repercussions of their discovery by the town's residents.

Pete's Dragon premiered at the El Capitan Theatre on August 8, 2016, and was theatrically released in the United States on August 12, 2016, by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.[4] The film received positive reviews from critics and was also a commercial success, grossing over $143 million worldwide against a $65 million production budget.[2]

Plot

[edit]

In 1977, 5-year-old Pete Healy is on a road trip with his parents when their car flips after nearly colliding with a deer. Pete's parents are killed but he survives and is pursued into the forest by a wolf pack, then saved by a large dragon with wings, green fur, and yellow eyes. Pete and the dragon quickly bond; Pete names the dragon Elliot after the lost-puppy character in his favorite book, and Elliot becomes protective of Pete.

Six years later in 1983, 11-year-old Pete spots a lumberjack crew chopping down trees near his home. Natalie, the daughter of ethical site foreman Jack, spots and pursues him. When she accidentally falls from a tree, her screams attract Jack and his girlfriend, park ranger Grace Meacham. Pete tries to run away, but Gavin, Jack's ruthless brother, accidentally knocks him unconscious. After realizing that Pete has vanished, Elliot stumbles around looking for him and ends up knocking over a tree near the lumber camp, leading Gavin to organize a hunting party to find him. Meanwhile, Pete awakens in a local hospital; he escapes and tries to return to the forest.

Gavin and his men locate Pete and Elliot's treehouse, but when they try to search it, Elliot reveals himself and scares them away. He follows them to town trying to find Pete. When he sees Pete settling in with Grace's family, he leaves. Pete gives Grace a drawing of Elliot and she shows her father, Conrad, who says he discovered the same dragon as a young man. He advises her to trust Pete and find Elliot.

The next day, Pete, Grace, Natalie, and Conrad travel to the forest to meet Elliot. A group of hunters led by Gavin surprises Elliot and shoots him with tranquilizer darts, then lock him up in Jack's warehouse. Before the authorities can inspect the dragon, Pete and Natalie free him from his chains and escape on a lumber truck with Conrad.

Angered, Gavin sets up a roadblock at the bridge to stop them. When Elliot tries to fly, he crashes into the truck, damaging its brakes and it goes through the barricade. Confused and frightened, Elliot perches on top of the bridge and starts breathing fire at the lead truck driven by Grace and Jack. The bridge begins to collapse under the intense heat, causing Grace and Jack's truck to fall through, Gavin then abandons his attack and tries to save them from death. Elliot emerges from the ravine with Grace and Jack riding safely on his back. With a firefighting helicopter approaching, Pete flees with Elliot back to the woods.

Pete pleads with Elliot to let him stay so he can protect him from his attackers, just as Elliot protected him. However, Elliot concludes that as long as they stay close together, Pete will always be in danger. He points out Pete's book to encourage him to return to stay with Grace and Jack. Pete is reluctant, and worried for Elliot's safety, but ultimately trusts the dragon's judgment. After a very tearful hug, Elliot returns to the mountains and Pete returns to live with Grace and Jack as his new family.

In the years that follow, Grace and Jack marry and adopt Pete as their son. Not only has Elliot slowly faded from the town's memory, but Gavin has learned to be more scrupulous and has moved on from the experience. Pete and his family eventually go on vacation and see that Elliot is finally reunited with his fellow dragons.

Cast

[edit]
  • Bryce Dallas Howard as Grace Meacham, a forest ranger and Jack's girlfriend later second wife.
  • Oakes Fegley as Pete Healy, a young orphan who lives in the forest with a dragon named Elliot.
    • Levi Alexander as 5-year-old Pete
  • Wes Bentley as Jack Magary, a widowed lumber mill owner who is Natalie's father, Gavin's brother and Grace's boyfriend - later husband.
  • Karl Urban as Gavin Magary, a hunter and lumberjack who is Jack's brother and Natalie's uncle.[5]
  • Oona Laurence as Natalie Magary, Jack's daughter and Gavin's niece.
  • Isiah Whitlock Jr. as Sheriff Gene Dentler
  • Robert Redford as Conrad Meacham, Grace's widowed father who has been telling stories about the dragon.
  • Marcus Henderson as Woodrow, a lumberjack and one of Gavin's men.
  • Aaron Jackson as Abner, a lumberjack and one of Gavin's men.
  • Phil Grieve as Bobby, a lumberjack and one of Gavin's men.
  • Jim McLarty as Ranger Wentworth, a forest ranger and co-worker of Grace
  • Ian Harcourt as Deputy West, a deputy who works for Sheriff Dentler
  • Steve Barr as Deputy Smalls, a deputy who works for Sheriff Dentler
  • John Kassir as the vocal effects for Elliot

Production

[edit]

In March 2013, Walt Disney Pictures announced it would remake Pete's Dragon, as a non-musical, dramatic film to be written by David Lowery and Toby Halbrooks, and directed by Lowery. Disney intended to rework the core story as a dramatic story, rather than a musical. It set the new work in the Pacific Northwest of the early 1980s, rather than the Northern New England of the early 1900s in the 1977 film.[6][7]

Live-action shots were filmed using Panavision Panaflex cameras, while Elliot the dragon was animated entirely by Weta Digital using CGI, rather than the hand-drawn animation of the 1977 original.[8][9]

On September 19, 2014, Disney cast Oakes Fegley and Oona Laurence to star as Pete and Natalie.[10] On October 2, Barrie M. Osborne was set to be the executive producer for the film.[11] On October 16, Robert Redford was in early talks to play a local storyteller who remembers seeing a dragon in the woods.[8] On November 20, Bryce Dallas Howard was in talks for the female lead role, a forest ranger who finds the boy and does not believe his stories about a dragon.[12] On January 7, 2015, Wes Bentley joined the cast of the film to replace Casey Affleck.[13] On January 9, Michael C. Hall was also added to the cast.[14] On January 29, Karl Urban replaced Hall.[15]

Principal photography commenced in January 2015 in New Zealand, with Lowery directing.[16] Rehearsals began early January 2015,[17] while news reported the beginning of the shooting on January 26, 2015, set to last through April.[8][18] Live-action filming locations included Bay of Plenty, Taupō and Wellington, while CGI was done at Stone Street Studios.[19] On February 10, 2015, a press release confirmed that principal photography had commenced.[9] Shooting took place in and around Wellington and Rotorua, before transferring to Tapanui, where the old Blue Mountain Lumber mill was used as the mill in the film, and the main street became Millhaven for two weeks.[20][21] Production concluded on April 30, 2015.[22]

Soundtrack

[edit]
Main article: Pete's Dragon (soundtrack)

Academy Award-winning composer Howard Shore was originally hired to write the music for Pete's Dragon. He was replaced during post-production by Daniel Hart, who had previously worked with director Lowery on other films, most notably Ain't Them Bodies Saints (2013).[23] The soundtrack was released on August 12, 2016, by Walt Disney Records. Though the film does not contain any songs from the original film, one song from that film, "Candle on the Water" (which was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song for 1977) was recorded especially for the soundtrack album by the band Okkervil River.

Reception

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Box office

[edit]

Pete's Dragon grossed $76.2 million in North America and $67.5 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $143.7 million, against a budget of $65 million.[2]

In the United States and Canada, Pete's Dragon opened on August 12, 2016, across 3,702 theaters, of which 2,884 were in 3D, and 150 were premium large-format screens, as well as in 57 D-Box and 16 Dolby Cinema sites.[24] It was projected to gross $20–25 million in its opening weekend.[25] The film did not have Thursday night previews, and made $7 million on its first day, Friday.[26] In its opening weekend, it earned $21.5 million, finishing third at the box office, behind Suicide Squad and Sausage Party.[27] The opening was reminiscent of Disney's July release The BFG, which also carried strong reviews into the weekend only to deliver $18.7 million in its first three days,[28] and far from the $67–116 million debuts of other Disney live-action adaptations, such as Cinderella, Maleficent, Oz the Great and Powerful, The Jungle Book and Alice in Wonderland. However, many box office critics did not worry about the opening figure, given the film's modest budget, and the fact that the film is not anywhere near as well known as those films' respective source material.[26][29] Disney's distribution chief Dave Hollis was optimistic that film would become profitable by saying, "People who are coming out of the theater are just loving it and their advocacy is going to help us put together a nice, solid run."[30] Forbes noted that the film did not have any box office draws other than the stellar reviews and the notion of another Disney "live-action fairy tale."[26] Although the film witnessed a steep decline on its second Friday (-55%), it fell just by 47.2% on its second weekend, grossing $11.3 million.[31] On its third weekend, it fell just by 35%, grossing $7.3 million.[32] The following weekend, Pete's Dragon declined only 14.7%, grossing $6.5 million and moved up to fourth place.[33][34]

Outside North America, Pete's Dragon received a scattered release pattern.[35] The film was released day-and-date in conjuncture with its U.S. premiere in 12 markets (roughly 30% of the overseas market), including the United Kingdom, Italy, and Russia.[24] It earned a total of $5.3 million, with Russia ($1.5 million), Italy ($1.4 million) and the U.K. ($1.1 million) representing its largest takings.[35] Moreover, it also opened in France ($1.8 million).[36] It had just a 1% drop in attendance in the U.K. in its second weekend.[36] It expanded to Germany the following weekend and continued its roll out in Australia, Mexico, Brazil and Korea throughout September, and finally Japan on December 23, 2016.[25][35]

Critical response

[edit]

The film was well received. Review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes gives the film an approval rating of 88% based on 246 reviews with an average rating of 7.4/10. The website's critical consensus reads, "Pete's Dragon continues Disney's current live-action winning streak with an update that gives the original a visual overhaul without overwhelming its sweet, soulful charm."[37] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 71 out of 100, based on 42 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[38] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A".[39][40]

Kyle Smith of The New York Post gave the film three-and-a-half out of four stars, and called it, "A cinematic enchantment" as well as, "one of the year’s best movies."[41] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone gave the film 3 out of 4 stars and wrote, "Thanks to director David Lowery's humanizing magic, this tale of an orphan boy and a dragon is that rare family film you really can take to heart."[42] Nancy Churnin of The Dallas Morning News gave the film a "B+" and said that while the remake, "may owe more to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, along with a dash of The Jungle Book than it does to the original Pete's Dragon," she overall concluded that "this story of two vulnerable souls who help each other find their way works, too."[43] Barry Hertz of The Globe and Mail praised the film for its sincerity as well as its "honest effort to entertain and enthrall" audiences rather than simply being a cash grab.[44]

Glenn Kenny of The New York Times felt mixed about the film in his review saying, "It is slightly unfair to say that this reboot of Pete's Dragon is middling on a larger scale, but it's not entirely inaccurate either."[45] Michael O'Sullivan of The Washington Post gave the film two out of four stars and wrote, "While Pete's Dragon does a fine job of evoking the delight one might feel at flying over hill and dale on the back of a mythological creature, it is less successful in rendering real human emotion."[46]

Accolades

[edit]
Award Date of Ceremony Category Recipient(s) Result Ref.
Golden Tomato Awards January 12, 2017 Best Kids/Family Movie 2016 Pete's Dragon 4th Place [47]
Heartland Film Festival October 30, 2016 Truly Moving Picture Award David Lowery, Walt Disney Pictures and Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Won [48]
Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards March 11, 2017 Favorite Movie Pete's Dragon Nominated [49]
Saturn Awards June 28, 2017 Best Fantasy Film Pete's Dragon Nominated [50]

Home media

[edit]

Pete's Dragon was released on Blu-ray, DVD and digital download on November 29, 2016.[51] The film topped the home video sales charts for the week ending on December 4, 2016.[52]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Pete's Dragon (R)". British Board of Film Classification. July 28, 2016. Retrieved July 28, 2016.
  2. ^ a b c d "Pete's Dragon (2016)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved January 30, 2016.
  3. ^ Bulbeck, Pip (August 17, 2015). "New Zealand Merges Film Agencies". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 18, 2015.
  4. ^ Lesnick, Silas (January 13, 2015). "Pete's Dragon for Set for 2016, Ghost in the Shell for 2017". comingsoon.net. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  5. ^ "Karl Urban replaces Michael C. Hall". Archived from the original on December 21, 2016. Retrieved July 30, 2016.
  6. ^ Guerrasio, Jason (August 11, 2016). "How this director went from making small indie movies to Disney's $65 million new blockbuster". Business Insider. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  7. ^ "After Gritty Sundance Debut On ‘Ain’t Them Bodies Saints’, David Lowery To Reinvent ‘Pete’s Dragon’ For Disney." Deadline Hollywood (March 19, 2013).
  8. ^ a b c Ford, Rebecca (October 16, 2014). "Robert Redford in Talks for Disney's 'Pete's Dragon'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
  9. ^ a b Evry, Max (February 10, 2015). "Filming Begins on PETE'S DRAGON Remake; Karl Urban and Wes Bentley Join Cast". comingsoon.net. Retrieved February 11, 2015.
  10. ^ Kroll, Justin (September 19, 2014). "Disney Finds Its Pete For 'Pete's Dragon' Remake". Variety. Retrieved September 20, 2014.
  11. ^ Caranicas, Peter (October 2, 2014). "Below the Line Bookings". Variety. Retrieved October 3, 2014.
  12. ^ Kit, Borys (November 20, 2014). "Bryce Dallas Howard in Talks to Join 'Pete's Dragon'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  13. ^ Ge, Linda; Sneider, Jeff (January 7, 2015). "Wes Bentley Joins Robert Redford in Disney Remake 'Pete's Dragon'". TheWrap. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  14. ^ Kroll, Justin (January 9, 2015). "Michael C. Hall Joins Disney's 'Pete's Dragon' Remake". Variety. Retrieved January 12, 2015.
  15. ^ Sneider, Jeff (January 29, 2015). "Karl Urban to Replace Michael C. Hall in Disney's 'Pete's Dragon' Remake". TheWrap. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  16. ^ "Casting call for Disney feature film Pete’s Dragon lead role." Archived August 19, 2014, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ "David Patrick Lowery - Instagram". instagram.com. Archived from the original on December 24, 2021. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
  18. ^ "On the Set for 1/26/15: Michael Fassbender Begins Steve Jobs Biopic, Ryan Coogler Starts Rocky Spinoff & More". ssninsider.com. January 26, 2015. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 30, 2015.
  19. ^ Bulbeck, Pip (November 20, 2014). "Disney Confirms New Zealand Shoot for 'Pete's Dragon'". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 14, 2015.
  20. ^ "Production on Disney's Pete'S Dragon Underway in New Zealand". broadwayworld.com. February 10, 2015. Retrieved February 10, 2015.
  21. ^ "Disney's Pete's Dragon Filming Locations". newzealand.com. Retrieved August 16, 2016.
  22. ^ Bernstein, Paula (May 7, 2015). "David Lowery's Production Diary for 'Pete's Dragon': Transitioning from Indie to Hollywood". Indiewire. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  23. ^ "Daniel Hart Scoring Disney's 'Pete's Dragon'". Film Music Reporter. May 2, 2016. Retrieved June 5, 2016.
  24. ^ a b Anthony D'Alessandro (August 9, 2016). "'Suicide Squad' Secures Record Monday Haul For August, Eyes $51M-$54M In 2nd Weekend – B.O. Preview". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  25. ^ a b Dave McNarry (August 9, 2016). "Box Office: 'Suicide Squad' to Easily Keep Top Spot Over 'Pete's Dragon,' 'Sausage Party'". Variety. Retrieved August 10, 2016.
  26. ^ a b c Scott Mendelson (August 13, 2016). "Friday Box Office: 'Sausage Party' Cooks 'Suicide Squad,' 'Pete's Dragon' Opens Just Okay". Forbes. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  27. ^ Scott Mendelson (August 14, 2016). "Weekend Box Office: 'Sausage Party' Sizzles With $33M, 'Pete's Dragon' Fails To Soar". Forbes. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
  28. ^ Brad Brevet (August 14, 2016). "'Suicide Squad' Drops Big, But Remains #1 as 'Sausage Party' Eats Up the Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 15, 2016.
  29. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (August 13, 2016). "'Sausage Party' Loud In 2nd With $32M+ As 'Suicide Squad' Drops Its Guns: Saturday Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 13, 2016.
  30. ^ Brent Lang (August 28, 2016). "Box Office: 'Sausage Party' Scores With $33.6 Million, 'Suicide Squad' Plunges in Second Weekend". Variety. Retrieved August 29, 2016.
  31. ^ Scott Mendelson (August 20, 2016). "Friday Box Office: 'Sausage Party' And 'Pete's Dragon' Drop Off, 'Bad Moms' Hangs Tough". Forbes. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  32. ^ Scott Mendelson (August 28, 2016). "Weekend Box Office: 'Suicide Squad' Tops $600M Worldwide, 'Jason Bourne' Nets $50M In China". Forbes. Retrieved August 31, 2016.
  33. ^ "September 2-4, 2016". Box Office Mojo. September 4, 2016. Retrieved September 6, 2016.
  34. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (September 6, 2016). "How Much Oxygen Is Left For 'Don't Breathe' At Box Office? – Final Tuesday Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  35. ^ a b c Nancy Tartaglione (August 14, 2016). "'Suicide Squad' Tops $243M Offshore & Rises To $466M Global; Will It Hang Onto #1 In 3rd Frame?- Intl Box Office Final". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 14, 2016.
  36. ^ a b Nancy Tartaglione (August 22, 2016). "Universal Pictures 'Pets' Collars $674M WW; 'Suicide Squad' Necks $575M Through Sunday – Intl B.O. Final". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 24, 2016.
  37. ^ "Pete's Dragon (2016)". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
  38. ^ "Pete's Dragon Reviews". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved August 21, 2016.
  39. ^ Anthony D'Alessandro (August 15, 2016). "'Sausage Party' Raises Its Heat To $33.6M in 2nd, Burning 'Suicide Squad'". Deadline Hollywood. It was the only movie to receive a solid A CinemaScore this weekend with families accounting for 66% of this reboot's business.
  40. ^ "PETE'S DRAGON (2016) A". CinemaScore. Archived from the original on December 20, 2018.
  41. ^ Kyle Smith (August 11, 2016). "'Pete's Dragon' is surprisingly one of the year's best movies". New York Post. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  42. ^ Peter Travers (August 11, 2016). "'Pete's Dragon' Review: Finally, a Summer-Movie Remake That Works". Rolling Stone. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  43. ^ Nancy Churnin (August 11, 2016). "Realistic 'Pete's Dragon' reboot owes more to 'E.T.' than the original, but that's OK (B+)". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  44. ^ Barry Hertz (August 12, 2016). "Pete's Dragon asks its audience to side with magic over cynicism". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  45. ^ Glenn Kenny (August 11, 2016). "Review: In 'Pete's Dragon,' a Magical Bond in Peril Again". The New York Times. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  46. ^ Michael O'Sullivan (August 11, 2016). "'Pete's Dragon' gets a technological upgrade, but is a storytelling throwback". The Washington Post. Retrieved September 11, 2016.
  47. ^ "Golden Tomato Awards - Best of 2016". Rotten Tomatoes. January 12, 2017.
  48. ^ "Disney's Pete's Dragon Honored with the Truly Moving Picture Award". August 12, 2016. Retrieved August 19, 2016.
  49. ^ Levy, Dani (February 2, 2017). "Justin Timberlake and Kevin Hart Lead Nickelodeon's Kids' Choice Awards Nominations". Variety. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
  50. ^ McNary, Dave (March 2, 2017). "Saturn Awards Nominations 2017: 'Rogue One,' 'Walking Dead' Lead". Variety. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
  51. ^ Silas Lesnick (November 29, 2016). "November 29, 2016: This Week on Blu-ray, DVD & Digital HD". Comingsoon.net.
  52. ^ Thomas K. Arnold (December 8, 2016). "'Pete's Dragon' Tops Disney Trio of Best-Selling Discs". Variety.
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