Even in a world where three legitimately good LEGO movies exist, we still feel skeptical when certain things take a run at the big screen, particularly when we’re seeing a change in form, like Disney’s live-action reboots or, yes, the animation of a bunch of brick toys we used to store in giant Tupperware bins. So you can imagine where our heads were going into the trailer for Dora and the Lost City of Gold, a live-action kids’ action adventure movie based on Dora the Explorer.
We’re pleased to say the trailer is a lot more exciting than we expected. Isabela Moner brings some spunk to Dora, and there’s lot of fun to be had in the clash between her Indiana Jones stylings and modern high school tropes. The school official yanking a lit flare out of her famous purple backpack scored a well-earned laugh in these offices.
The cast of Dora and the Lost City appears up to the task of bringing some good all-ages fun, too. Michael Pena is in full Goofy Dad Mode—always a treat—and Eva Longoria can be the fun adventurous mom of our neighborhood any day. We still don’t know what Danny Trejo is going to bring to the voice of Boots, Dora’s monkey, but maybe that’s something best left unknown for now.
Is everything a home run in the trailer? Not really. The CGI is a bit dicey, and there are some obvious gags, but overall this took us from “all the way out” to “mildly optimistic.” Just because they can make a movie about everything now doesn’t mean they should, but hey, if Dora can still bring kids a fun time, who are we to stand in this little adventurer’s way?
Look for Tomb Raider Jr. to arrive in theaters August 2.
