Dumbo Review: 5 Ups & 5 Downs
A frustrating yet adorable return for Disney's cutest creation.
Tim Burton's long-awaited live-action remake of Disney's Dumbo is out in cinemas now, and the somewhat frustrating truth is that it's neither as bad as you might've feared nor as good as you may have hoped.
Squarely mixed reviews from critics are largely on the money - this is an often charming and delightful film that's also bogged down by many of Burton's worst excesses as a filmmaker, and the demands of a studio perhaps over-keen to quickly remake all of their most iconic properties in live-action form.
But if fans can appreciate that there's no way in hell this movie can hold a candle to the 1941 animated classic and approach it on its own terms, it does boast a certain crowd-pleasing appeal, largely thanks to the spectacular digital recreation of the title character.
Dumbo certainly isn't anywhere near as strong as it could've been, and it sadly lands on the weaker end of the recent spate of live-action Disney remakes, but it also works often enough as frothy comfort food with a few smart updates for modern audiences. But first, here's what it gets wrong...