‘Brave’ Trailer Shows Pixar’s Emphasis on the Family

We’ve learned a decent amount about ‘Brave’ over the last few weeks … and yet, I’m still not exactly sure what it’s about. I mean, we’ve met Merida, the arrow-slinging ginger at the lead of Pixar’s latest. And we know she embarks on some adventure in the Scottish highland. But what’s the significance of the massive bear? And what is that mysterious blue flame?

A new trailer, out today, tries to shed some light on the ‘Brave’ mysteries.

With ‘Brave’ reaching theaters on June 22, expect Pixar to ramp up its marketing push with full-length teasers such as this. The trailer goes into greater detail about the characters surrounding Merida (Kelly Macdonald), the princess who wants very little to do with her royal family. We meet her parents, Queen Elinor (Emma Thompson) and King Fergus (Billy Connolly), and her three rambunctious brothers … who you know will steal the show. And we get a better idea of the wish Merida makes that likely causes troubles for the entire kingdom.

But the second half of the trailer, when things slow down and Pixar sells the emotional component of the upcoming story, is the part that has me excited for ‘Brave.’

See for yourself. The film was co-directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman. It’s the first non-sequel Pixar has tried since ‘Up,’ and the first film in the studio’s history to be structured around a female protagonist. As we mentioned, it opens everywhere on June 22.