Finding Dory

If you want animation that is not just for kids, Finding Dory is available in Australia on Disney Plus, and in the US on Disney Plus right now. The runtime earns every minute, with nothing here that feels like padding. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. The visual style is immediately recognisable, but the writing is what keeps you watching. Start it on Disney Plus whenever you need something guaranteed to land.

Finding Dory is not trying to be everything to everyone, and that focus is exactly what makes it work. Visually distinctive and narratively ambitious, Finding Dory operates well above the genre average. Dory is reunited with her friends Nemo and Marlin in the search for answers about her past. What can she remember? Who are her parents? Albert Brooks and Ellen DeGeneres bring more to it than the format typically demands. Finding Dory came out in 2016. The animation style is distinctive enough to be immediately recognisable, but it is the writing underneath that keeps viewers coming back for more. It knows exactly what it is, and does not try to be anything else.

Finding Dory belongs on any best-of list regardless of format. It stands on its own even without an obvious comparison point. Short enough to finish in one sitting, substantial enough to feel satisfying. The writing operates at a level the format's reputation does not fully prepare you for. Adult animation that actually works for adults.