Girl power for a new generation

Pixar’s “Brave”offers a truly magnificent portrayal of its young heroine’s fighting spirit while never getting too preachy

By Christopher Kelly
McClatchy Newspapers

POSTED: 01:30 a.m. HST, Jun 22, 2012

~~<p>There are no Prince Charmings in Pixar's new animated adventure "Brave," no knights in shining armor. For the most part, the men in this arresting and affecting movie — set in an enchanted Scottish kingdom an undetermined number of centuries ago — are content to booze and brawl and leave the business of running things to the women.</p>
<p>The heroine is a tomboyish teenage princess named Merida (voice by Kelly Macdonald), who has porcelain-white skin, saucerlike blue eyes and a flaming and unruly nest of red curls. At the start of the film, she is fighting against her parents' dictate that she must be betrothed to one of the eldest sons of the kingdom's most respected families.</p>
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There are no Prince Charmings in Pixar's new animated adventure "Brave," no knights in shining armor. For the most part, the men in this arresting and affecting movie — set in an enchanted Scottish kingdom an undetermined number of centuries ago — are content to booze and brawl and leave the business of running things to the women.

The heroine is a tomboyish teenage princess named Merida (voice by Kelly Macdonald), who has porcelain-white skin, saucerlike blue eyes and a flaming and unruly nest of red curls. At the start of the film, she is fighting against her parents' dictate that she must be betrothed to one of the eldest sons of the kingdom's most respected families. Login for more...