The highly anticipated, 13-years-in-the-making sequel to Disney's Finding Nemo was finally released to theaters last Thursday. Finding Dory received outstanding reviews from the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and other critics known around the globe. It has been described as "a dazzling and technically impressive return to form that delivers a similar high to Finding Nemo without feeling like a retread" by Jimi Famurewa of Empire. Whether viewers saw this film as an addition to that of Finding Nemo or a new story of its own, it is truly touching and provides a sense of closure for those who grew up watching Finding Nemo.
We've all seen posts on social media about how a child under the age of 12 today could not possibly appreciate Finding Dory as much as those who have been alive since before Finding Nemo came out 13 years ago. I have to say I agree with that statement. At the end of Finding Nemo, we all realized that Dory was a hero because Marlin surely couldn't have found his son without her. We were relieved when Marlin and Nemo came back together, and moved that Dory had become a third member of their small family. It was true that they were all lucky to find each other, but many questions were left unanswered. Where did Dory come from? Could anyone do anything to help her short term memory loss, or would she just have to live with it forever? We were left feeling concerned for Dory while happy for her at the same time.
Fortunately, what felt like thirteen years above sea-level was only one year below it! We find Dory living with Marlin and Nemo, fully accepted and loved. However, Dory's curiosity and glimpses of childhood memory take her on a journey much like that she went on the previous year with Marlin to find Nemo, but better. This time, we all got to discover how Dory learned to speak Whale, and how the "Just Keep Swimming" song was created. We got to see just how loving her parents were, and the effort they made to find her. Dory sees in the end that she was not a nuisance because of her short term memory loss, but instead adored for her desire to follow her heart and always do the right thing. Her weaknesses proved to be her strengths. What she believed divided her from the crowd was actually what brought a whole bunch of different sea creatures together.
To little ones, Dory is a pretty fish who made an exciting journey. To those of us who grew up with her, she is a symbol of self love and relentless hope.
