How a scary dinosaur adventure became a massive box office success
In short: In 1988, Don Bluth aimed to create a dinosaur version of Bambi. However, the resulting adventure was so intense that producers feared children would be crying in the lobby. Despite these fears of being too dark, the film became a massive success, launching a sprawling franchise.
Directed by Don Bluth and executive produced by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas, The Land Before Time follows Littlefoot, a young Apatosaurus, as he searches for the Great Valley. The journey is a survival tale, as Littlefoot flees famine and the threat of a Tyrannosaurus rex—referred to by the characters as a 'sharptooth'—after his mother dies protecting him. Along the way, he is joined by four companions: Cera the Triceratops, Ducky the Saurolophus, Petrie the Pteranodon, and Spike the Stegosaurus.
The production was marked by significant tension regarding the film's tone. Spielberg and Lucas expressed concerns that the content was too dark for young children. This led to massive cuts; just weeks before the November 18, 1988, release, over 10 minutes of footage were removed to avoid disturbing parents. This included intense scenes of the young dinosaurs in grave danger. In total, the film's runtime was reduced from 82 minutes to 69 minutes. These edits even resulted in continuity errors, such as the Tyrannosaurus appearing to have both eyes open despite being blinded in earlier sequences.
Despite the heavy editing, the film was a major commercial triumph. It grossed $84.5 million against a $12.3 million budget, making it Don Bluth's second highest-grossing film, surpassed only by Anastasia in 1997. The success of the film, alongside other projects, prompted Spielberg to found his own animation studio, Amblimation. While the original film was a theatrical release, it remains the only one in the franchise not to be a musical and the only one released in theaters worldwide.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: The Land Before Time (film)
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