Important Ichthyological Issue

[Orrex]

In the nature documentary Finding Dory, there's a scene in which the helpful whale shark uses her tail to flip our forgetful protagonist out of the water and into an area that Dory couldn't otherwise access.

However, the way it's animated, the whale shark's tail appears to be horizontally oriented like a mammal's, rather than vertical like a fish's.

Was the whale shark simply using the side of her tail? Or was this a major flub by the famously detail-oriented Pixar animation team?

[pinboy3niner]

1. My advice...

[Orrex]

2. That's your answer for everything.

[pinboy3niner]

3. I'm finny that way

[Major Nikon]

8. ...

[aidbo]

4. I haven't seen the movie, but googled for an image.

It looks like they've got it right in the images, so probably it was turned on its side.

[Orrex]

5. Whew!

My faith in Pixar is restored.

[sl8]

6. Is this the scene in question?

(at 1:53)

[Orrex]

7. WTF?!?

So is her spine half-twisted laterally in that shot, or is she some kind of unholy mammal/fish chimera?

[sl8]

9. On a related note:

A marine biologist 's problem with the movie Finding Dory:

https://li.st/l/9f1f525a-8f47-4226-ad49-6d2cc84ab8b1

[Orrex]

10. Minor spoilers: I wondered about the "whale song" the whole time, in fact

Spoilers in white:[hr][font color="white"]The beluga guy was cool, but there's no reason why Destiny couldn't have filled his role, even with the head injury & malfunctioning echolocation. It also bugged me that Destiny was able to leap over the perimeter wall, as the marine biologist notes, as well as her rapid swimming, which seems inaccurate.[/font][hr]

Still enjoyed the movie, but this was indeed a weird portrayal.

[jmowreader]

11. I seem to remember Bruce in the first movie

Bruce is a Great White shark that became a vegetarian and an animal rights activist. A "whale shark" that's a cross between a humpback whale and a mako is completely believable after that.