Dora and the Lost City of Gold es las Rodillas de Abeja

Dora and the Lost City of Gold (2019)

Boy, did this movie surprise me. When this movie was first announced, I immediately wrote it off as trash, and as more information was released, I told myself not to get sucked in by the quality cast and the big budget. I could not fathom how a children’s cartoon about a girl going on nonsense adventures and breaking the fourth wall could fill 90 minutes of live action screen time and entertain more than just children. I have never been so wrong about a movie (except for X-Men Origins: Wolverine, which I thought was going to be incredible). Dora and the Lost City of Gold was a blast of a movie. It was the perfect balance of earnestness and tongue-in-cheek to capture the heart of the show and the requirements of theatrical success. It felt like it was written by people who grew up watching Dora the Explorer, but grew cynical with age while still holding some of the lessons about bravery, love, and friendship from the show. The writers were clearly well-versed in the show, covering every major trope, simultaneously incorporating it as a pivotal part of the story and lampooning it. This movie knew that it was based on an unrealistic, formulaic show for toddlers and it took that torch and ran with it, crashing through every obstacle in order to make an unbelievably watchable adventure movie. With the core of teenagers doing the exploring and only Dora being very useful, it reminded me of Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, but it had its own quirks to not appear derivative. My biggest gripe with the movie is that there were times where some gravitas could have been added, but everything is played fast and light, even the moments with the most dire circumstances. This does not really detract from the movie, though; it only prevents it from reaching the level of other surprise family hits, like The Iron Giant and The LEGO Movie. I thoroughly enjoyed Dora and the Lost City of Gold and highly recommend it to anyone who has seen at least a few episodes of the show. It loses its value if you are completely unfamiliar with the source material. I give Dora and the City of Gold diez out of doce estrellas. Can you say diez out of doce estrellas? *Pause* ¡Muy Bien!