The task I have been given this week is to interpret and provide meaning behind a scene of one of my favorite film of my choice. I had only gone through a few options in my head and I recalled the movie We’re Back! A Dinosaur Story by Steven Spielberg. Through out the years, it has remained my most cherished animated film.

When I watch any movie, I am always looking for the message. In most feature films, everything in a scene is intentional, dialogue is intentional, characters are intentional. These statements are amplified in animated films, there are no accidents; especially when it is a hand drawn animated feature film.

With that said, I love ripping apart hidden meanings and drawing connections to symbolism across the board. We’re Back! A Dinosaur Story takes place in a early 90’s New York. The movie begins with Captain Neweyes is going through history collecting dinosaurs with his time machine and feeding them his “Brain Grain” to increase the intelligence of the dinosaurs to civilize them. The goal is to bring them to modern times for kids to experience live dinosaurs, a childhood dream.

On the other end of the spectrum, we find the maniacal evil brother, Professor Screweyes who is up to no good and orchestrates a scheme for the docile dinosaurs to consume his “Brain Drain” reverting to their prehistoric nature, becoming the center piece for his freak show circus to instill primordial fear in his audience.

When all is said and done, the dinosaurs are found and rescued by the good brother, Captain Neweys and this is where the scene I’ve chosen to analyse comes into play:

In the final showing of Professor Screweyes, he has just been humiliated by his employee circus clown which is why he is taking off the red nose cap. His willingness to shrug off the confrontation is expressed with the prideful removing of the cap flicking away the object. Even with all of the trouble caused by the Professor, his brother still desired to extend a hand with the condition of repentance (a reconsideration and change of direction). Without hesitation Screweyes gives an adamant “Never” crossing his arms and turning away in pride. The good brother accepts the decision and regretfully departs as they ascend in the light, which is a depiction of right standing and elevation in offering peace without compromise.

The light brought in by the brother fades and the faces in the crowd disappear. There is immediate regret in Professor Screweyes as the only moonlight remains from the hole left by the departure of his brother. The final words as the birds of the air circle are “Brother, brother; wait. When I am alone… when I have no one to scare, I get very frightened myself. The crows could… *gasp*” the crows circling him, waiting for his isolation then surround him and form a murder, leaving nothing left but the cold steely screw. Even the screw is removed from the scene by the final crow leaving nothing left of the brother.

I believe there is deeply hidden symbolism throughout this movie, and chose this short scene to spare typing. This movie has many scriptural teachings and uses many occult references. In this scene alone, we see the birds of the air, which in parables of Jesus would be a symbol of demons. There is also the symbol of the metallic eye where the Professors namesake stems from. A popular image that corresponds to the “all seeing eye” which many occult groups ascribe to as their source of knowledge, power and wealth. The only power shown in this scene is the ominous green vapor left behind, yet the eye was not consumed; instead, carried away by the creatures who removed it from the failure of the man it once inhabited and empowered.  The lesson here is when evil has it’s way, the life of the participant will ultimately end in loneliness and failure; to then be discarded by the very evil that guided that person down their path of willful destruction.