Dinosaur

        Aside from Toy Story, Disney's Dinosaur was the first 3D computer animation I had seen. The difference between the former and the later is that the characters in Toy Story are mostly toys and live in a correspondingly soft, idyllic toy box world. The dinosaurs on the other hand are depictions of living, breathing animals, inhabiting a harsh pre historic landscape, hence the animation style is slightly more naturalistic.

 

        As a child I distinctly remember being bowled over at the realism of the water and other habitats. Later, I discovered that this was due to the fact that many of the locations were real places, filmed and used as a backdrop. However, the animated creatures blend seamlessly into these environments, adding to the magic a young audience would no doubt feel at these long extinct being brought back to life before their eyes.

        There is a lot to admire in the way the dinosaurs move; flesh rippling as they run, fight and tumble which really adds a sense of weight and substance to these digitally rendered images. Also, despite being made just before the 'breakthrough' fur animation of Monsters Inc, the Lemurs' fur is very convincing and looks soft enough to touch.