NYStray

3 / 10

If you\'re a die-hard fan..., June 06, 2011

All right, I re-watched Balto 3 recently and even though I still don't like the movie that much it is not as bad as I remember, though it is still my least liked among all 3 movies.

Granted, the animation was a little better than Wolf Quest, but I thought the story wasn't very well-written.  the escuss use of crappy CGI bothered me, as well as almost all of the characters.  Balto and Jenna seemed really out-of-character to me and their son, Kodi, did not hold my attention that much.  I don't think he's the worst character, but I didn't think he was the best, either.
I don't really picture the Balto in the first movie ever having a dream to fly in a plane, so I doubt that would be something the original Balto would be interested in.

The add-on of characters such as Stella, Mel, Dipsy and the 2 moose in the woods, makes the movie goofy, but not in a very entertaining way, just in a usually annoying way.  Kodi's team didn't interest me as characters that much, probably due to a lack of history or character display, and I hated how much Dusty looked like Aleu (I know their similiarities, but still something could have been changed beside height, color & front leg sock markings).
I didn't like Duke as a character that much, he just wasn't all that interesting.  I doubt his part in the movie would have changed much if he didn't talk at all.

The problem with this movie, to me, seemed to be too much comic relief.  If you count Mel, Dipsy, most of Stella's antics, Kodi's team (who, besides Dusty, where often used for comicl relief), and Muk and Luk that makes 9 comic relief characers, which I think it is way too much (not to mention the pointless moose bucks Balto and the others come across while recusing Duke). 

What I do like about this movie where the references to the first movie (and the short reference to the second).  Also, though I didn't absolutely fall in love with Kodi's character, I did appreciate that the animators tried to make him actually look like a mix between his mother and father (taller build, scruffy chin, darker/dustier fur color than Jenna, etc.).  The music is nothing to really scream over, "You Don't Have to be a Hero" was really sweet, and I do like the fact that Jodi Benson sang the song & did the voice of Jenna for the sequels, that was just a plus.  (Though it likely couldn't be helped, I think I would have liked the sequel Baltos better if they were voiced by Kevin Bacon; granted Maurice LaMarche did a pretty good job and sometimes he did sound like the original Balto, but it's just not the same).

All in all, watch the movie if you're a die-hard Balto fan, but don't be surprised if you're disappointed.  The cons of this movie tend to out-weigh the pros.