|
"Winner Of The
Box-Office Race" |
 |
Directed by John
Lasseter - Written by
John Lasseter, Dan
Fogelman
Starring Owen Wilson,
Paul Newman, Bonnie
Hunt, Larry the Cable
Guy
Distributed by Pixar/Buena
Vista - 2006 - 116mins -
Rated G |
| |
|
Ahhhh.....It's got that new movie smell. |
| |
Hurrah!
Another Pixar movie!
Yet another entry in a line of genuinely great animated films!
Certainly “Cars” will top the ungodly precedent set by “Finding Nemo,”
”Toy Story” and “The Incredibles!”
Actually…
No.
I guess that Pixar has been soaring so high for so long that it was
inevitable that it couldn’t consistently top itself forever. “Cars” is
charming, funny and often wonderful…certainly, it’s better than 90% of
all other family entertainment, but compared to previous Pixar movies,
it’s a bit formulaic and simple.
The plot revolves around a world inhabited entirely by cars (an idea
that works far better than it sounds), who eat, sleep and operate
businesses. Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) is a rookie racecar with a
massive ego who attempts to travel to California for the championship
race. Along the way, he gets stranded in the town of Radiator Springs,
a once thriving town nearly destroyed by the building of an
interstate. Naturally, he learns the importance of friends and
teamwork and such.
First off, this is a GORGEOUS film, possibly the best animation that
Pixar has created so far. On multiple occasions, I actually thought I
was watching incredibly smooth stop-motion animation…all of the cars
have real weight and light reflection looks truly natural. In true
Pixar fashion, the attention to detail is incredible with hundreds of
funny details and jokes (insects are tiny VW Bugs with wings). There
is a visual splendor on display here that no other animation house can
match (coughDREAMWORKScough).
For the jump up in animation, though, the script takes a jump down. Is
it a bad script? Certainly not. But it does lack the wit, warmth and
intelligence of “The Incredibles” and “Finding Nemo.” Much of the
humor derives from (often funny) car puns, but rarely from the
characters themselves. It’s also occasionally touching, but not so
much that I had fully invested myself in the characters.
I did like Owen Wilson in the lead, as well as Paul Newman as an aging
racecar, George Carlin as a hippy van who sells his own special brand
of gasoline and the Pixar regular John Ratzenberger as a Mack
Truck…hell, I even liked Larry the Cable Guy (whom I normally despise)
as a rusty tow truck. However, as the love interest, Bonnie Hunt falls
completely flat. Pixar movies have always worked because of the
character relationships that were created through wonderful voice
acting…I just couldn’t buy the love here.
Let me make this clear: this is NOT a bad or even mediocre film. It’s
a truckload of fun (har har) and will keep the kids and the adults
entertained. It even makes a brave choice and has an ending that is
uncommon for this type of film.
I had hoped to end this review with a cheesy car pun, but I have
nothing.
|
| |
|
© Written by Jacob Hall -
Email
Me! |
TC Candler's Comment
n/a
Richard Propes' Comment
n/a
|
