Finding Dory fans have already fallen for the title regal blue tang fish (voiced by Ellen DeGeneres), who propelled the Pixar sequel to a record-breaking $136.2 million opening weekend.
But there’s so much more to find in Dory.
The new chapter's unheralded stars include smaller but memorable characters and dazzling scenes with special effects that weren't possible in 2003’s Finding Nemo.
“There’s a bit of breathtaking appreciation,” says Andrew Stanton, who directed both movies. “But if you’re doing it right, people are just accepting of these scenes and move right on, staying completely in the narrative. It’s kind of a thankless job.”
Here’s some true appreciation.
THE WATER
Water is obviously a big deal in a fish story. But the water in Finding Nemo was just implied, something of an animation magic trick with the fish “floating in this virtual air,” Stanton says. “We actually had very little special effects of water in Nemo because we barely could."
But animation technology has improved in the last 13 years, allowing filmmakers to include all the complicated properties of water — from surface movement to the rendering of light rippling through the depths. It’s a stunning improvement.
“We basically include the surface and the reflection of light in every shot,” Stanton says. “We do it with coffee pots, fish tanks and pools. We did it wherever we could. We were kids in a candy store.”
GERALD THE SEA LION
Finding Nemo co-writer Bob Peterson came up with Dory's out-there sea lion Gerald, who is aggressively barked off a resting rock by bigger sea lions Fluke and Rudder.
“Bob’s kind of the Gary Larson of the group, bringing The Far Side element to our special sauce,” Stanton says.
Gerald is a natural scene-stealer with his crazed expression, bushy eyebrows and goofy doggy-paddle swim, even if the other sea lions pick on him.
“Gerald is hilarious and shows there’s a playground pecking order,” says Stanton, who notes that the cheeky sea lion does triumph. “Gerald eventually has his day.”
THE SEA KELP
Stanton wanted sea kelp in Finding Nemo, but the technology wasn’t there to make it fluid and realistic. “It would have been the budget of the entire movie to execute it,” he says.
In Dory, gently-swaying long stalks in which every leaf moves differently because of unseen water currents are possible and ever-present.
“Each leaf, each stalk is offset from one another,” Stanton says. “And it plays a great narrative role as a metaphor for a fairy-tale forest where you get lost and then find the answers.”
BABY DORY
Seriously, how cute is the youngest version of Dory? As part of the fish's heart-wrenching backstory told through flashbacks, baby Dory is voiced by 7-year-old Sloane Murray (daughter of producer Lindsey Collins). Even DeGeneres admits her mini-me is cuter than the beloved adult Dory.
“Baby Dory is even more adorable,” DeGeneres says. “Baby anything is just more adorable.”
DeGeneres says Murray sat near her at the June 8 world premiere. "(Murray) kept latching onto me because I guess she thinks somehow we're together," DeGeneres says. "She's so precious."
