Ugly Dolls
Runtime: 87 Minutes
Directed by: Kelly Asbury
Ugly Dolls is a cute animation about the rejected toys who are not-so-perfect, and their journey to find the child they belong with. It is here I’d like to note the patronising use of ‘cute’ as demeaning and not as praise for this animated journey of Moxy and the gang. This entire film felt like a sub-par version of Toy Story with less likeable characters, a shallow and basic storyline, and missed opportunities to have a truly meaningful resolution.
While it was riddled with issues, there were rare glimpses of charm that I wished the film had pursued further. Moxy was loveable. Her love of children and desire to be pursuing her destiny by helping a child was touching and the concluding scene, while brief, was heart-warming. Moxy was the ever-positive dreamer we all wish we could be and emulated this ray of sunshine in every task she pursued. Mandy had the potential to have some depth, but the use of her glasses as her ‘ugly’ persona didn’t seem to send the right message and made her story arch feel shallow. Mandy had some powerful moments, but they always seemed diminished by the fact that her hardest battle was simply to wear her glasses and she had very little development from that point onwards, inside or out. The villain, Lou from the Institute of Perfection, had a lot of potential after his back story was revealed, but sadly the film decided to firmly place him in the moustache-twirling, baby kicking (this actually happened) villain stereotype and he was also left with little room to grow. The introduction of Ox’s backstory and how he came to be the founder of Uglyville could have really saved the film, but rather than following through, it seemed they were too lazy to discuss anything deeper.
For an animated musical, the songs sucked. Personally, I love musicals. I love people randomly breaking into song and the time that is saved by a character literally getting to shout across the rooftops how they feel. However, straight from the beginning, the songs lacked any purpose or any catchy element that would keep me or kids bouncing in their seats with excitement. The soundtrack, decidedly pop genre, didn’t seem to fit the mould of individuality that the film was trying to promote as every song sounded like the one that proceeded it. The songs also seemed to play little role as no further information was provided and no characters grew during the songs. The opening number specifically ends with the main character, who had been engaging happily in the entire song about “how could things get better?” by stating something completely to the contrary of the lyrics just uttered. This made the soundtrack feel contrived and left you checking your watch rather than being drawn into the story. The setting transference that sometimes occurred during these musical numbers also made those scenes feel displaced as characters were suddenly floating in space or throwing shooting stars into the air making you question if any of it had happened at all or if I had just experienced an acid trip.
Voice acting casting was also an issue, as the presence of Kelly Clarkson (a beautiful singer who literally won a popular contest in America) as Moxy, an ugly but loveable misfit, felt out of place. This once again seemed to undermine their message of beauty is on the inside with this character, who has a beautiful voice and famous background, leading the film. While I understand the casting of Pitbull as a character called Uglydog was too tempting to miss, his random rap battles also felt out of place and seemed to suggest they thought very little of their audience’s intelligence.
This film had a real chance to have a deeper message but failed to do it. While Toy Story has never shied away from deeper (almost existential) issues, Ugly Dolls didn’t seem to trust their young audience to handle complex issues like; beauty and the acceptance of your own flaws. Seen beautifully in the Pixar short “Present,” it is evident that a story of substance can be told through simple means and still have a profound effect on their younger audience.
Had this film invested some more time in the overall message and stayed true to the strength that animation can have with subtle and nuanced storytelling, Ugly Dolls could have resonated more with me. Sadly, this film was shallower than the residents from the Institute of Perfection.
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