Starring Raymond Ochoa, Jeffrey Wright, Frances McDormand, Jack Bright, Anna Paquin, Sam Elliott; directed by Peter Sohn; 110 minutes; PG for peril, action and thematic elements

Disney films have a tried and true formula, and “The Good Dinosaur” is no exception. However, there’s something rather soothing about the familiar, and when it’s executed well, it’s cinematic comfort food. The time-tested template is in full force in the latest Disney-Pixar flick: take one misfit youth, add parental peril and a journey away from home, where our protagonist learns a life lesson or two and displays some hard-won heroism.

The very short premise of the film is that the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs missed the Earth, thereby allowing for their continued presence on the planet, which has remained undeveloped, with humans scarce. The dinosaur in question is Arlo (voiced by Raymond Ochoa). He’s the runt of the litter, born to a family of brontosauruses. Arlo doesn’t quite fit in with his siblings, and his parents gently but firmly urge him to test his limits.

Arlo ends up on a journey far from home, where, against his instincts, he ends up adopting a feral little human critter, Spot (Jack Bright). Scaredy-cat Arlo finds his counterpart in fearless Spot, and the two realize that they need each other in order to get home. The lessons woven into the story of Arlo’s journey home ring all the right emotional bells. It nails the recipe for a heart-warming and affecting family film, with a sprinkle of weird to keep things interesting.

Katie Walsh, Tribune News Service