Like most good animation films, Finding Nemo's appeal transcends the age divide. Pixar Films' computer-generated sea creatures and the vast expanse of the ocean are straight out of any child's fantasy. The adventures of clownfish Nemo and his father Marlin hold them in enchantment and occasionally send their collective pulse racing, like when Marlin gets trapped in a school of stinging jellyfish. Marlin becomes a cautious father after losing his wife, Coral, and 399 of their 400 eggs to a shark attack. It's with a lot of trepidation that he takes Nemo to the school and the very first day itself the kid-fish is whisked away on a trip to "drop-off", the point where their reef opens into the deep ocean. Here Nemo defies the watchful father to swim up to a boat from where he gets scooped up to the aquarium of a dentist who eventually wants to gift Nemo to his nasty niece Darla (her meanness defined by the Psycho track in the background). Meanwhile, Marlin embarks on a mission to save Nemo and in the course of his journey from The Great Barrier Reef to Sydney, he meets several interesting creatures, including Dory, the fish who can read English but has a severe memory problem.
For the adults it's a combination of the emotional parent-child separation theme and the witty lines that work. As do the allusions to popular films like Psycho and Jaws. However, it's the human voices which add the vital third dimension to the cartoons, most of them coming with heavy Australian accents to go with the setting of the film. Each of the creatures stands out like a human being and has a well-defined character and attitude. The timid, overprotective father (Albert Brooks) is someone any 21st century paranoid parent would identify with. Even when his kids are yet to open their eyes to the world, his worry is: "What if they don't like me!".
Most of all, Finding Nemo is a touching tale which reassures you that even though things may look bleak, it will all turn out well in the end, that even a little fish with a deformed fin can take on the entire ocean, that a meek dad can go up in his child's esteem. And that no fish should ever be kept in the box, it'll eventually get out of it.
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Courtesy: Film Information
