Voices of Robyn Moore and Keith Scott
Directed by Yoram Gross
Music by Guy Gross, Bob Young, John Levine, and John Zulaikha; Lyrics by John Palmer
Let's return to the Australian outback this weekend for the next film in the long-running Dot series. After Dot and the Koala ended up being something of a cross between a typical Saturday morning cartoon of the 80's and Animal Farm, the next film returned to the original format of Dot encountering Aussie animals in the real outback. This time, the theme is the Australian insect world, including a few most people don't really think of as heroic or friendly. How well does Dot do in her time among the insects? Let's begin in the outback, as a live-action Dot (Ashley Ayre) tries to keep her brother Simon (Leaf Nowland) from harming ants and caterpillars and find out...
The Story: Dot (Moore) eats a magic root in order to explain to the insects that she tried to help them, but she eats the wrong root and shrinks to their size. She first befriends Keeto (Scott), a sweet male mosquito who agrees to help her find the root. Dot tries to go inside to find her mother, but she encounters cockroaches who don't take too kindly to her. Militaristic ants who think she's the one who destroyed their home like her even less. Their queen (Moore) looks down on her. She almost becomes food for a nasty wasp (Moore) and befriends a hungry caterpillar (Scott). Meanwhile, Dot's old friend the kangaroo shrinks down and goes looking for her.
The Animation: Same as most of the other movies in this series. After the weird and too-cartoonish Dot and the Koala, it's almost refreshing to see this one go back to drawing the animals more realistically. They're still not that well-integrated with the actual environments, but they look like the animals they're representing and they move well enough.
The Song and Dance: Like I said, after the preachy environmental message and odd Saturday morning vibe of the previous film, it's rather a relief to see this one return to formula. Good-natured Keeto is at least somewhat more tolerable than annoying Funny Bunny from Dot and the Bunny, and we get to see the mother kangaroo and a bit of her close relationship with Dot again this time, too. It's also fascinating to learn more about both insects that are native to Australia, and ones like mosquitoes and caterpillars that most of us have in our own backyards.
The Numbers: Our first song goes to Dot as she explains why the "Little Things" of nature mean so much. "Cockroach" and his brethren sing to Dot about how they've managed to survive for so long, while the "Work Ant" marches its way to its home carrying a screaming, furious Dot. "Queen Ant" sings about how she's on top of the heap in her ant hill. Butterwalk the Caterpillar (Scott) tells Dot how he'll become a "Butterfly." There's also talk of the fearsome "Spider." We end with a reprise of "In the Kangaroo Pouch" from Dot and the Kangaroo as the Kangaroo takes Dot home.
What I Don't Like: Honestly, this one shares most of the same problems as the rest of the series. The animation, though it's improved since the previous entries, still isn't great. The story meanders and wanders along with Dot. It's not for someone who is looking for a more straightforward plot.
The Big Finale: Honestly, if you liked the other films in this series, you'll enjoy Dot's visit with the Australia's smallest residents just as much.
Home Media: YouTube only at the moment.
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