Dino King

2012 โ€ข 88 minutes
4.3
258 reviews
56%
Tomatometer
Eligible
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About this movie

Meet Speckles. He's a Tarbosaurus, and lives a happy life in his forest home with his mom and siblings. Until one day, as he's just learning to hunt, he encounters One-Eye, a Tyrannosaur looking for a new place to live. His herd is attacked, leaving poor Speckles alone in the world. But when he meets Blue Eyes, another lonely and lost Tarbosaur, they become close companions - and then, over time, a family of their own.

Ratings and reviews

4.3
258 reviews
Kyle Vansteelandt
June 28, 2021
I did not expect on how heavy this movie is; it is relatively overwhelming with redeemable qualities and the flaws that I had. This South-Korean fantasy drama is one Frankenstein of a movie, and kind of a rip-off too; it's pretty much in the tradition of "the land before time" because it is a fictionally inaccurate story with anthropomorphism within these dinos, and "the lion king" because it is also a coming-of-age story. But it does have a family plot-line where a married couple had kids during the second half of the movie. This film may be too intense and too sad for younger viewers; it has starvation, an erupting volcano, a meteor shower, battles that are intense and grueling, there is some blood, the body count of deaths is rising, and the deaths of the dinos are heartbreaking. This film is suitable for ages 10 and up. The pacing of each passage provides efficient timing alongside the thorough composition of it's screenplay with memorable imagery that is nicely detailed. But there is one plot twist that is a ridiculous plot hole that seems pretty impossible and questionable. the animation is beautifully breathtaking with eye-catching detail and shining gloss on each surface during the sunlight. The animated designs for the dinosaurs are especially remarkable. The epic symphonic score by Lee Mi-Sung is an emotionally grand support that adds effective gravity to the storytelling and emotion of the movie. The narration by Veronica Taylor (as the voice-over of young Speckles) and Christopher Daniel Barnes (as the voice-over for adolescent to adult Speckles) offers some engaging emotional material for the storytelling. But there's another aspect to make the storytelling so engaging: The script that Veronica and Christopher are reading for Speckles thoughts are based on what Speckles is experiencing and what he sees with his own eyes which makes it so creative enough to make this utterly engaging. There are even some dinosaur species that this film educates by saying the names of these dinosaurs, like Tarbosaurus, Charonosaurus, Hypsilophodon, Torosaurus, Tylosaurus, Therizinosaurus, and many more. But Tylosaurus does not grow to 100 feet long. It's interesting to see two adult male tyrannosaurs at the same size at 38 feet long (Tarbosaurus and Tyrannosaurus) fight to the death in grueling battles that feel climactic (even though they don't live on the same continent). Speaking of Tyrannosaurus, the main antagonist is One-Eye the monstrous Tyrannosaurus with his frightening appearance and vicious disposition, and what really makes him an effective antagonist is that he is cunning, persistent, and unstoppable. But the big problem that I had with One-Eye is that he is a hybrid rip-off of Sharptooth from the land before time due to the fact that he is a rogue killing machine, and Scar from the lion king because he has a noticeable scar on his left eye and killed the main hero's parent. Too conclude: I enjoyed "Dino King: An Amazing Adventure" even with it's flaws, particularly the lack of originality. It's a decent movie to watch; it's captivating and it's engaging at times.
Land Before Time 75
August 28, 2019
I absolutely love this movie so much. In fact, itโ€™s one of my favorite childhood dinosaur movies ever next to Dinosaur 2000, The Land Before Time Saga, March Of The Dinosaurs and the Jurassic franchise. This movie is so awesome and my favorite childhood dinosaurs are in the movie and theyโ€™re awesome and impressive looking and the animation of the dinosaurs are incredible (looks similar to March of the Dinosaurs and Planet Dinosaur). After all, I rather watch this awesome beautiful movie over Walking with Dinosaurs 2013 Movie with the silly voiceovers. Speckles the Tarbosaurus is way better than the 2013 Walking with Dinosaurs Movie and it will be the greatest dinosaur movies in my childhood next to Dinosaur 2000 and Land Before Time Score: 100/100 Grade: A + This movie is one of my second favorite childhood dinosaur movies of all time alongside Dinosaur 2000, The Land Before Time, Prehistoric Planet 3D and the Jurassic World Movies as one of the greatest dinosaur movies ever made.
Only Anonymous
December 18, 2016
I like the graphics. You really grow to care about the main character, Speckles, and you feel his emotions through the film. There are some happy, but a lot of sad parts as well. I would recommend watching with your children as the topic of death is a sensitive one, even if it's about Dino families. Better for older elementary school aged kids. It's included in Netflix and free on YouTube.