The Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists
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The Land Before Time IV: Journey Through the Mists is a 1996 American direct-to-video animated adventure musical film produced by Universal Animation Studios and directed by Roy Allen Smith. This film serves as the sequel to The Land Before Time III: The Time of the Great Giving, is the fourth installment of The Land Before Time series and third The Land Before Time sequel directed by Smith, as well as the last to feature any of the original voice cast. The film was nominated for two Annie Awards.
Plot
Littlefoot and his dinosaur pals go in search of a medicinal flower that will cure his ailing grandfather with their new friend Ali, all the while avoiding getting eaten by Ichy and Dil.
Bad Qualities
- It is a step down from the previous three films.
- The biggest problem with the movie is that its plot and characters have no development.
- Speaking of the story, it is extremely predictable and boring and its time feels longer than that of the other Land Before Time movies because of the plodding, uninspired plot.
- Cera is unlikable in this movie, unlike some of the Land Before Time films.
- While the other Land Before Time movies had their dark moments, this one has a tone too campy.
- The biggest problem with the movie is that its plot and characters have no development.
- The Longnecks come across as very unlikable characters as they refused to add Littlefoot's Grandmother to The Land of Mists to get the medicinal flowers in order to heal Littlefoot's Grandfather, even tho they are their cousins. Even Old One (the Longneck Elder) turns down Littlefoot's offer due to the fact that The Land of Mists is "too dangerious".
- Ichy and Dil are uninteresting, horrible, and dull antagonists who have no real motivations other then wanting to eat Littlefoot and co., not to mention they feel VERY out-of-place and do not fit well with the esthetics of The Land Before Time series, looking more like rejected antagonist out of a Jungle-theme film like The Jungle Book rather then a film that's about Dinosaurs.
- The songs, as usual, get in the way of the plot and feel random and all over the place, even though the first movie is not even a musical.
- The animation is once again cut-rate and cheap, still compared to the original movie, but that is to be expected for Direct-To-Video standards.
- Some scenes involving The Land of the Mists can get rather terrifying for children, despite this being rated G, specie mention goes to the climax.
- The voice acting, while not terrible, can be obnoxious at times.
- It doesn’t help that this is the last time Candace Hutson voices Cera.
- As mentioned on BQ #1, the characters are underdeveloped.
- There's a noticeable plot-hole in this film that's never gets explain: Its reviled that the Night Flowers, which are what can cure a dinosaur(s) sickness, are grown in The Land of Mist, which is also were all of the Longnecks came from, so if they previously live an a place were it has Night Flowers, why did none of the Longnecks think about taking a Night Flower with them when they move out of the valley in the first place?
- There are some suspicious animation errors.
- Sometimes, the lip syncing can go wrong.
- Some lame and stupid dialogue, mostly because of the bad writing.
Good Qualities
- It has a great message about friendship and learning how to make new friends.
- Ali is well-liked by fans, as she gave the franchise some "girl power" for a change.
- The musical score is decent, particularly the themes by James Horner.
- The animation, while still not as good as the first film, is at least a slight improvement over the other two sequels.
- Some good jokes here-and-there, such as the scene were Dil bits off a log that's wrap around Ichy's neck, which cause his feathers on Icty's head to get mess up.
- The voice acting, though it can get annoying at times, is overall pretty good.
- It does show Littlefoot caring for his grandfather as he tries to help him get well using the medicinal flower.
- Spike does talk at one point as he was trying to say Ducky's name after Ducky got caught by Ichy and Dil.
Reception
While some fans found it one of the more popular Land Before Time films, Journey Through the Mists was still given negative reviews by critics; many who generally criticized the lack of plot and character development, although some liked Ali for giving the series some girl power.