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It's cute but average.

[Shopaholic35 · 5/10 · 14 November 2014]

It's cute, silly and slightly low-brow but it's a bit of animated fun. Overall the story is nothing special and feels pretty generic. There are parts that keep you engaged and other times the story seems to be lagging a bit. Not terrible though. I will say that the animation was pretty. All the characters looked like individuals and were uniquely special. It was something I was not expecting from a low-budget animated movie. There were also quite a few action sequences that were very well illustrated.

My final recommendation would be that if you have a young son who loves Dinosaurs then this is a great choice but you must love the subject matter to love the film. There just isn't enough substance otherwise.

The voice actor cast deserved a better story and more focus to detail

[Horst_In_Translation · 4/10 · 18 August 2014]

It took almost 18 months since the film's premiere in South Korea to reach Germany, but now it has. Being a fan of all kinds of animated films, I thought I'd give it a chance. I watched a German synchronized version, so I didn't get to hear the voices of some well-known American actors including several Emmy nominees and winners: Melanie Griffith, Jane Lynch, Rob Schneider and the Baldwin brothers Stephen and William doing the voices for the two main antagonists. The only one I'd like to emphasize is Tara Strong, not known by many, but with quite an impressive body of voice acting in recent years. Director Yoon-suk Choi was mostly involved with Korean non-animated television so far and the other director John Kafka brought some animation experience to the table from working on Rugrats or Ninja Turtles TV series.

Unfortunately, despite that (or because of that) the film only succeeded very rarely. It's really only for children who won't think about it in depth and just enjoy the images and funny(?) actions of the characters. There's no real deeper meaning or captivating action in this one. The whole coke OK the time machine subplot was pretty terrible I thought. Or the fact that he needed years to build the machine the first time, but now with the help of the mother from one of the disappeared kids it takes hours. Well.. I guess you shouldn't think about it too much or you could probably even criticize the concept of time travel as a whole.

The film had its moments though too. Many of these involved the dino-mum: the language barrier for example or the moment she realizes that she is not the main character's real mother was actually quite a bit touching. Surly and Sarco were truly intimidating, not sure if too much for smaller children and the fight sequences involving them weren't all that bad. However, the switches between the T-Rex mom and those two changed so quickly and randomly, it felt a bit strange. As a whole, I can't really recommend this film and it's really only a must see for people who want to see every animated movie there is.

Very poor!

[monkey_bean10 · 3/10 · 27 May 2015]

Despite being an adult nearing 30, I am still very partial to kids animated films and 90% of the time I thoroughly enjoy them. This film, however, was incredibly poor. The storyline and script but appalling and it felt really dragged out. It was also incredibly predictable. I was surprised by the lack of humour too. Obviously, this is aimed at children, my son, who is 4, watched it quietly. He is a dinosaur fanatic. He only seemed truly captivated towards the end when there was a little more action involving the dinosaurs but it certainly didn't get the rave reviews that other films like How To Train Your Dragon or even Disney's Dinosaur received. A rainy day DVD film at best - and that's if you're desperate.

Mediocre entertainment for the kids

[sjschluet · 3/10 · 6 June 2015]

Very little for the adults. While somewhat entertaining for the kids, it relies mostly on the "less wholesome" elements for entertainment, i.e. fart jokes, crashes, smart remarks, rather than the clever plots you expect from the more mainstream AAA animated titles. As for the animation quality, it tends more toward the low end of what is expected of computer animation in 2015. The people are OK, the non-humans are fairly simple, and the terrain and environment at times don't mesh well with the action-- especially the water scenes. The animation quality is clearly not central to the movie, but to claim they were relying on the rest? The plot is simple, and the story idea is bizarre and not very logical or clever. Overall, it can entertain the kids (at least some of them) for a while, but definitely no comparison to the big animated movies.

Worst script ever written

[brunette_blueye · 1/10 · 30 December 2019]

My kids enjoyed this, don't get me wrong. But they're 4.

What possessed the actors to read this script and STILL say yes to putting their name to this movie I don't know. It tries desperately hard to be funny and doesn't succeed. The characters are undeveloped, the plot doesn't make sense and the interactions between the characters is nonsensical. At times it's like the script writers were told they had 2 minutes to complete it and rushed to do it as fast as possible.

Terrible. I cringed so hard through the whole thing!!!

Cute!

[Simonster · 7/10 · 29 March 2011]

Viewed at the Festival de Cannes 2010

An animated film that doesn't insult kids' intelligence, isn't about shifting as much merchandise as possible and won't have parents hitting the booze in the middle - that's Dino Mom.

Technically, as in terms of animation, Dino Mom hits above its weight. It's no Pixar of Dreamworks, or Disney, but nor is it churned out shovelware either. There is ability and care on show here, which extends to the characters, both humans and dinosaurs, too. The moral of the story, moms are a good thing, is simple and nicely done. The film might not stand up to repeat viewings but for a one-off treat, something the kids can be left to watch while parents do something else (Get drunk, maybe?), it's perfect.

Dino-tastic it is not

[TheLittleSongbird · 2/10 · 25 February 2017]

As a lifelong fan of animation, an admirer of Tara Strong and as someone who is interested in dinosaurs and has been enthralled by many films featuring them, 'Dino Time' had potential. Sadly, the execution was a long way from fantastic, much of it lousy.

'Dino Time' is not a complete waste of time. Some of the animation is serviceable enough, the colours are pretty and exotic looking and the backgrounds are nicely rendered and quite rich in detail. Some of the voice cast acquit themselves well, Grey De Lisle, Tara Strong and Pamela Adlon always do their best regardless of what's thrown at them while Jane Lynch is engaging.

Not that either element is completely successful. The character designs are unattractive and stiff and there is a general lack of visual imagination. As for the rest of the voice cast, others do not fare well. Melanie Griffith sounds disinterested, Steven and William Baldwin just don't sound sinister enough for villains and Rob Schneider is unbearably obnoxious.

Every other element is poorly done. The soundtrack is forgettable at best and doesn't rouse, catch or engage. The writing is often very forced, especially in the humour which is never funny (quite the opposite), and the story is dragged out, predictable and contrived. Not even the action engages and the time machine stuff is muddled.

Characters are an infuriating mix of bland and annoying, and the obligatory villains' motives are never made clear, let alone expanded upon.

In conclusion, pretty bad and a long way from dino-tastic. 2/10 Bethany Cox

I DIDN'T DO IT

[nogodnomasters · 7/10 · 11 April 2019]

Ernie lives with his single mom and sister Julie. Mom believes in rules and Ernie does not. Julie lives for catching Ernie breaking the rules. Max is Ernie's best friend and son of single dad inventor Dr. Santiago. (Unwritten Hollywood Rule: If you have an Hispanic-American you don't need an African-American.) They all live in Terra Town, a placed based on dinosaur fossils.

Dr. Santiago happens to have built a time machine in his garage which doesn't work until the kids enact "The Pepsi Syndrome" and speak the childhood mantra "I didn't do it." They go back in time where they meet dinosaurs who can talk to each other, but not to humans.

Ernie speaks to us from asides. A fun film for kids, but may not be the one they watch repeatedly.

Insults children's intelligence.

[Mr-fancypants-45-201361 · 1/10 · 5 July 2014]

I was sitting in the lounge room with the TV on. I saw Dino Time playing and was curious. With in the first 5 minutes I was laughing at how bad it is. Dino Time has a generic plot, scary character designs and terrible animation. The story line was so dumb and stupid that a baby would understand.the characters are unlikable and the villain has no motive other than 'be bad.' The comic relief had me want to rip my hair out, it was that annoying. Considering they got such good voice actors it's such a Shame how bad this movie got. Don't waste your time with such a terrible movie that insults children's intelligence and will leave you walking out.

Nice bit of dinosaur fun

[harlingsbargains · 10/10 · 3 July 2020]

Yes the animation isn't great and the story line is a bit strange but it's a nice little movie for kids. My daughter is 4 and she loves it, I'm letting her be the judge.

Amazing adventure story with adorable characters!

[yoonji_ooo · 10/10 · 17 November 2015]

I usually watch animations, and Dino Time is one of my best movies, following Inside Out! Animation always brings me to the childhood, and I enjoy it. I watched this movie with my younger brother. He also loved the movie. The message of the movie is simple but impressive. The characters are adorable, and their adventure is fantastic. I had no idea before, that dinosaurs can be such cute characters! Also the music helped me to be absorbed in the story more. Gorgeous movie, I really love it! I usually watch animations, and Dino Time is one of my best movies, following Inside Out! Animation always brings me to the childhood, and I enjoy it. I watched this movie with my younger brother. He also loved the movie. The message of the movie is simple but impressive. The characters are adorable, and their adventure is fantastic. I had no idea before, that dinosaurs can be such cute characters! Also the music helped me to be absorbed in the story more. Gorgeous movie, I really love it!

Spend your money and time

[thatninetyskid-02781 · 10/10 · 18 March 2015]

When i hear "Dino Time", all Im really hearing is "the best movie ever made." Even just watching only a second of a clip from the movie, you know you're in for a treat, but more like an ice cream sundae. its a movie for the whole family and the whole universe. It's the ideal movie for a first date or a wedding anniversary. Sometimes the voice acting is so good i listen to the same voice clip for 24 minutes straight, especially the dinosaur noises. Why am I writing a review on this movie? Well you see, whenever I mention Dino Time, none of my friends know what I'm talking about. Dino Time needs as much love as you love the free food on airplanes. It makes me cry that the movie didn't earn the trillion that it deserved. By now I must've bought it 45 times, but I can't give the film the praise it deserves by myself. I need you guys. Please, this isn't even a joke. Every character in the movie is fully developed and the animations/graphics are so great, better than you, Disney. Go home Disney, it's Dino Time's time to shine. Dino Time is serious business, you better not criticize Dino Time. The story's pretty great too. Are you just sitting around not watching Dino time? You better stop not watching Dino Time or I'll turn you into a dinosaur.