Tinker Bell and the Legend of the NeverBeast (2014)
In Tinker Bell and the Legend of The NeverBeast (2014), the story focuses on Faun, instead of Tinker Bell, this time around. Faun is an animal fairy and has the ability to communicate with any type of woodland creature, thusly tasked with caring for the wildlife in Pixie Hallow. After a comet flies across the sky of Neverland, a beast awakens from the depths. Faun, curious about any kind of creature, eventually stumbles upon this strange beast and attempts to befriend and learn more about it.
The NeverBeast, which Faun aptly names Gruff, was probably my favorite thing about the movie. Without the ability to speak, he's animated with amazing curiosity and playfulness. Gruff reminded me of a possum, crossed with a cat, and was seriously adorable despite being a giant among the fairies.
The writing is once again charming and well written. The various personalities shine through, with every fairy speaking and reacting in their own signature way. The addition of the Scouts was also great, and the movie did a good job setting them up as elite, above any other fairy, talent wise. They were amazing.
In the NeverBeast there's something at stake and there's a real sense of impending doom looming throughout the entire movie. It's a darker tale than any other in the series before it, but I also feel like it has more meaningful depth.
Awe, the ending. That ending! Everything building up to it is perfect and when it finally concludes? It's heartbreaking. Amazingly heartbreaking. Which is odd coming from one of many sequels to a Tinker Bell movies. I think I cried. A bit. Very well done.
Now, spoilers ahead. The only part I have an issue with is how Faun came back to life. Up until then, and the ending after that, everything was pretty much freaking amazing. However, the slight brush of electricity from Gruff's fur bringing her back from the brink of death was a bit cheesy. Hardly enough to detract from the perfect tale, but it was the only moment that actually took me out of the story and made me shake my head. That and the final, “I love you,” in the end was a bit much, but like I said, it's a small thing compared to the success of the rest of the movie.
Also, while I do praise Faun and her development, she seemed out of character in this movie. In the previous films she was the more down to earth, yet spunky, fairy in the bunch. Iridessa is the worrier, Silvermist is bubble-headed, Rosetta is prissy, and Tink was always the mischievous, carefree member of the group that let her curiosity cause chaos and mayhem. In The NeverBeast, Faun takes on that role, even taking Tink's traits of talking to herself and wandering about as she makes a decision. In essence, Faun was Tinker Bell, while Tinker Bell was a less spunky and mischievous version of her previous movie incarnations. Or perhaps that speaks more to Tink's growth as a person, er fairy, and maybe Faun's spending too much time with her?
This was a really great movie. I wasn't expecting very much, considering it's yet again another Tinker Bell movie. Don't get me wrong, I love the Tinker Bell series, and I've seen them all! My wife and I are big fans. However, this might be my favorite. There was so much heart to the story and the ending nearly left me in tears. None of the other movies have done that. If you're a fan of Tinker Bell, or just someone casually interested in the movies, this is a must see.
TINKER BELL AND THE LEGEND OF THE NEVERBEAST is available now on DVD, Blu-Ray and Digital .
