What if sixty-five million years ago the dinosaurs were not wiped out by a colossal asteroid strike?  According to this Disney-Pixar tale, the Earth would now be dominated by dinos who farm and ranch.  If the concept is a little iffy — and it is — at least the artistry of the piece is intact and worthwhile.

Peter Sohn’s film (it was originally Bob Peterson’s film, but he was replaced and Sohn retooled the film over the last year) posits that the youngest, Arlo, of a family of what look to be brontosaurs, is pretty much a scaredy-cat.  So naturally Arlo finds himself swept downriver well past the world he knows, having to walk all the way back home. Along the way he befriends a young human he names Spot, which is appropriate since the kid acts more like a dog than a person.

The story is pretty lame until the pair almost reach home and finally have to part.  Then it becomes a genuine tear-jerker.  These types of films offer certain buttons that, when pushed, evoke emotion; it has almost become a science.  Anyway, the most impressive aspect is the animation, which blends what look like real views of water and forest with just gorgeous effects.  I didn’t think much of the main dinosaurs’ appearance; they seem straight out of “The Flintstones.”  But most everything else is very visually impressive.

Pixar films have seemed off-track for a while now, and this one is no exception.  It is slow, not very amusing and never achieves the sense of completeness that it needs.  It’s pretty weird, too, to watch a trio of tyrannosaurs herd buffalo.  I kept wondering where the other species of dinosaurs were, and what they were up to.  Farming dinosaus just are not very exciting.  ☆ ☆ 1/2.  21 December 2015.