Review By JESSICA ALMY
“Fish are friends, not food!” No wonder PETA loved this animated flick aimed at the preschool and early elementary crowd. While parts were scary for my kiddo, she empathized with the plight of fish in captivity, reasoning that they would be happier in the wild with their families.
Personally, I loved that the sharks had formed a support group to wean themselves from eating fish. How many of us have felt the need for a little help — particularly in the early days of our vegetarianism or veganism? I guess our veg meetups and picnics function as informal support groups, but imagine what the world would be like if people trying to rid themselves of meat-eating had sponsors and twelve-step programs!
Rated G. Common Sense Media rates this is as “on” for ages 4+, but some veg kids might appreciate this more when they’re 6+.
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Jen // Feb 23, 2010 at 1:57 am
I remember being in a Japanese restaurant when FN was released and a family of 5 came in, all wearing FN t-shirts and hats. They had a huge spread of non-veg sushi while discussing how much they loved the movie. I was a fish eater still (I think) but it seemed to me that they missed some points.
Doris // Mar 2, 2010 at 3:59 am
I had mixed feelings about the movie. I don’t think the filmmakers had this intention, but the movie convinced a lot of kids to flush their pet fish down the drain, because they thought the fish would end up in the ocean, happy and free.
Jen // Aug 15, 2010 at 6:46 pm
We finally watched this a few weeks ago and its turned into a favorite. I really liked a few of the subplots– the overbearing parent learning to let go, the fact that though Nemo was “different” he was still extraordinarily capable, and of course, one of my favorite scenes is when the school of fish are fighting their fishstickian fate by working together cooperatively! I was surprised at how much my family enjoyed this movie, but its been in heavy rotation for post-camp afternoon viewings lately.