‘Finding Dory’ laugh-out-loud funny

When Dory said “just keep swimming” in 2003’s Oscar-winning film Finding Nemo, she could not have imagined what was in store for her (not that she could remember). Ellen DeGeneres, voice of the friendly-but-forgetful blue tang fish, is back in a new big screen adventure diving into theatres this week.

“I have waited for this day for a long, long, long, long, long, long time,” said DeGeneres. “I’m not mad it took this long. I know the people at Pixar were busy creating Toy Story 16. But the time they took was worth it. The script is fantastic. And it has everything I loved about the first one: It’s got a lot of heart, it’s really funny and the best part is – it’s got a lot more Dory.”

Director and Pixar veteran Andrew Stanton takes audiences back to the extraordinary underwater world created in the original film. “There is no Dory without Ellen,” said Stanton. “She won the hearts of moviegoers all over the world – not to mention our team here at Pixar. One thing we couldn’t stop thinking about was why she was all alone in the ocean on the day she met Marlin.

“In Finding Dory, she will be reunited with her loved ones.” Finding Dory takes place about a year after the first film and features returning favourites Marlin, Nemo and the Tank Gang, among others.

DESTINY

– voice of Kaitlin Olson

She may be a clumsy swimmer, but she has a big heart. She has a big everything, actually – whale sharks are the biggest fish in the sea. Destiny resides in the Marine Life Institute, where one day an oddly familiar blue tang named Dory falls into her pool. Destiny is admittedly embarrassed by her obvious lack of grace, a product of poor eyesight, but Dory thinks she swims beautifully. And Dory is delighted to learn that her supersized friend speaks whale, too.

BAILEY

– voice of Ty Burrell

He’s the Marine Life Institute’s (MLI) resident beluga whale who is convinced his biological sonar skills are on the fritz. Doctors at the MLI can’t seem to find anything wrong with him. Bailey’s flair for the dramatic never ceases to push his neighbour’s buttons: whale shark Destiny can’t seem to get through to him, no matter how hard she tries.

HANK

– voice of Ed O’Neill

New character Hank is an octopus. Actually, he’s a “septopus”: he lost a tentacle – along with his sense of humour – somewhere along the way. But Hank is just as competent as his eight-armed peers. An accomplished escape artist with camouflaging capabilities to boot, Hank is the first to greet Dory when she finds herself in the Marine Life Institute. But make no mistake: he’s not looking for a friend. Hank is after one thing – a ticket on a transport truck to a cozy Cleveland facility where he’ll be able to enjoy a peaceful life of solitude.

DORY

– voice of Ellen DeGeneres

She suffers from short-term memory loss, which normally doesn’t upset her upbeat attitude – until she realises she’s forgotten something big: her family. She’s found a new family in Marlin and Nemo, but she’s haunted by the belief that someone out there is looking for her. Dory may have trouble recalling what she’s searching for, but she won’t give up until she uncovers her past and discovers something else along the way: self-acceptance.

MARLIN

– voice of Albert Brooks

He may have travelled across the ocean once, but that doesn’t mean he wants to do it again. So he doesn’t exactly jump at the opportunity to accompany Dory on a mission to the California coast to track down her family. Marlin, of course, knows how it feels to lose family, and it was Dory who helped him find Nemo. The clownfish may not be funny, but he’s loyal – he realises he has no choice but to pack up his nervous energy and scepticism and embark on yet another adventure, this time to help his friend.

NEMO

– voice of Hayden Rolence

His harrowing adventure abroad doesn’t seem to have sapped his spirit. In fact, when Dory remembers pieces of her past and longs to take off on an ambitious ocean trek to find her family, Nemo is the first to offer his help. Nemo wholeheartedly believes in Dory. After all, he understands what it’s like to be different.

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