Back To The Outback: Same Life Lesson, Different Movie

Back To The Outback is a charming kids movie that teaches them the important lesson of not judging a book by its cover.

Back To The Outback teaches kids one of the core life lessons that family focused animation always teaches them — do not judge a book by its cover. This time the story takes place in Australia as a group of dangerous animals escape captivity and try desperately to get back to, you guesses it, the outback. They inadvertently take an adorable baby Koala Bear named Pretty Guy with them. 

The audience quickly catches on that the expected roles here are reversed, with the dangerous and “ugly” animals being beautiful on the inside, and the Koala, well, not so much. Pretty Guy immediately judges them and wants nothing to do with them. As they try to find a new place to call home, the zookeeper Chaz and his son Chazzie hunt them across all of Australia in hopes of capturing them and bringing them back.

The overall story is extremely predictable. There are no twists and turns, or surprises, that will shock the adults watching, although younger kids might be on the edge of their seats every now and then. However it is able to pull of being quite charming at times, not to mention the silly humor that families will enjoy.

Back To The Outback features animals that are native to Australia, which is one of the best parts of the movie. It felt a bit educational at times but allows for children to learn about these fascinating creatures in a fun way.

The group consists of a poisonous snake, a Thorny Devil lizard, a hairy spider Frank, and a sensitive scorpion. The animation style makes them look more cute than ugly, in my opinion, but they continue to call themselves ugly. 

As a parent I am not a massive fan of this choice. They go so far as to have an ugly society made up of other creatures. While this is important to the story, I really wish they would have chosen a different name for it. It really drives home the point they are trying to make, but I try to teach my children that nothing is ugly, and that it is a horrible word to use. 

That being said, the meaning of this is to teach kids that it is what is on the inside that is important, so I suppose I will let it slide. Back To The Outback really does do a good job of pushing that lesson. From the moment Pretty Boy opens his mouth he is obnoxious and annoying, showing that while he is cute on the outside, his personality does not match it.

All of his life, Pretty Boy has been pampered and spoiled, making it tough for him to survive in the wild. But will spending all of his time with these animals that have been feared all their lives change him? The answer is an obvious one, but I promise you, your kids won’t care if they figure it out early on, they will still enjoy the movie from start to finish.

With bright and vibrant colors, the animation is sure to capture the attention of children from the start. It isn’t top notch animation, but it doesn’t need to be. It does it’s job and that is to entertain kids, and perhaps teach them something in the meantime.

The voice cast is amazing, and easily the best part of the film. The actors are all Australian, which helps to make the movie feel more realistic. They do a great job with the dialogue they are given, and really bring something special to each of their characters.

Toward the end, Isla Fisher who plays Maddie, sings — and it is the standout moment of the movie. Enough to give everyone who is watching chills. 

It is easy to fall in love with this group of “ugly” and dangerous creatures, which says a lot because I personally do not like spiders and snakes, but yet these ones stole my heart a little bit. 

Overall Thoughts

Back To The Outback is made for kids, which is something that should be remembered about it when deciding how you feel. Sure, it is totally predictable and has simple dialogue, but aren’t all children’s movies that way? If children are completely entertained for ninety minutes, the movie does its job. And mine were captivated from start to finish.

Once again kids will learn not to judge a book by its cover, and overused concept but one that is important for little ones to understand. While the use of a certain word doesn’t exactly make me happy, I understand the necessity of it. 

Overall Back To The Outback is a charming movie with a fantastic cast that teaches kids about Australian creatures, and why it is important to look inside of someone, and not just at their outside appearance.

It is important to remember who this movie is made for when judging it — and that’s children. Sweet and charming, it is still the same life lesson we see over and over.

About Back To The Outback

Tired of being locked in a reptile house where humans gawk at them like they’re monsters, a ragtag group of Australia’s deadliest creatures plot a daring escape from their zoo to the Outback, a place where they’ll fit in without being judged for their scales and fangs.

Leading the group is Maddie (Isla Fisher), a poisonous snake with a heart of gold, who bands together with a self-assured Thorny Devil lizard Zoe (Miranda Tapsell), a lovelorn hairy spider Frank (Guy Pearce), and a sensitive scorpion Nigel (Angus Imrie).

But when their nemesis — Pretty Boy (Tim Minchin), a cute but obnoxious koala — unexpectedly joins their escape, Maddie and the gang have no choice but to take him with them. So begins a hair-raising and hilarious road trip across Australia, as they are pursued by a zookeeper Chaz (Eric Bana) and his adventure-seeking mini-me (Diesel La Torraca).

Directed by Clare Knight and Harry Cripps, and also featuring the voices of Rachel House, Keith Urban, Celeste Barber, Wayne Knight, Lachlan Power, and Jacki Weaver, BACK TO THE OUTBACK is an animated adventure that proves just because something’s different, doesn’t mean it isn’t beautiful.

Back To The Outback hits Netflix on December 10th.