 So far, Pixar has given personality to toys, bugs, monsters and fish who, as far as we can tell, live in a sort of "real-world" setting. For this reason, when the idea of these anthropomorphic cars and trucks came along for Pixar's next movie, I turned my nose up at it. I didn't have a problem with it, per se, but it was very clear-cut this time that it was gonna be for kids (in other words, I still hadn't learned my lesson when it came to Pixar's storytelling quality). What I thought this film was going to be was what 'Cars 2' became, but more on that with that review.
'Cars' tells a story that takes place in an alternate world where vehicles take on human qualities while maintaining most aspects of cars we know about. Here, we meet racing rookie, Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) who goes up against retiring legend, Strip "The King" Weathers (Richard Petty) and pro racer, Chick Hicks (Michael Keaton) in the final race of the Piston Cup. The race ends un a three-way tie, however, and a tie-breaking race is scheduled for one week later at the Los Angeles International Speedway. McQueen maintains a cocky attitude about his skills, and doesn't seem to want or need anyone's help to become a new racing legend. He becomes desperate to get to LA quickly to shmooze with Dinoco; the oil company representing Hicks, in the hopes to switch to them over his less glamorous Rust-Eze sponsors. McQueen insists that his transport truck, Mac (John Ratzenberger again) drive straight to LA through the night, which results in Mac dozing off and a near-accident that sends McQueen falling out of the trailer, finding himself lost, and soon in trouble with the small town of Radiator Springs after accidentally ruining their main road. McQueen is tasked with fixing the road before they allow him to leave, making him stress about the big race. However, McQueen also meets a group of locals, primarily featuring a Porsche named Sally (Bonnie Hunt), a tow truck named Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) and an experienced Hudson Hornet known as Doc (Paul Newman), who might collectively be able to teach him that winning and fame aren't all there is to life. My opinion on the 'Cars' series has been more or less the same throughout the trilogy (so far) in that these movies are nothing special, and Pixar doesn't exactly strike the same chord here as with other films. For my money, however, I would lean towards the first film probably being the best of the three (at least easily over 'Cars 2'). When the location of Radiator Springs is seen as an aged and forgotten place that once looked awesome in its heyday, it does provoke a certain nostalgia. I think it's safe to say that many of us live fairly close to an area that would have been a lot of fun in a certain time, but now it's old and forgotten just because people have moved on. That aspect of the film is actually pretty moving, and does tug at the heartstrings a little. So it was good to see that the film certainly still had that Pixar heart behind it. The film's overall emotional impact hits a touch harder when we see that it is dedicated to the late Joe Ranft, who ironically died tragically in a car crash during the filming of 'Cars'. He has several credits to his name in the Pixar collection up to this point - where he would get his credit for co-directing. One has to appreciate that 'Cars' brings the name to the viewer's attention, as if to say "this guy had a hand in everything we've done" (quite literally). He may be best known as a voice actor, but the man worked in the art department and penning scripts as well. Because of this memorial, I end up liking the film more; not just because an important person passed away, but because it makes you take a second look at the film's message of enjoying more of life's simple pleasures and not constantly focusing on one thing, and heading in one direction, as you could be missing something great. I enjoy 'Cars', but it's unfortunate that it's responsible for launching a whole somewhat failed universe of both Cars and Planes. This series has three movies, and Disney (without Pixar) saw some money to be made by spinning off of the universe with 'Planes' (1 and 2). This was one of those cases where it didn't quite work out in their favour due to rough reviews and poor box office returns, and I'm glad they didn't draw it all out by coming up with something like 'Boats' or 'Trains' next. But if I were to recommend any of the titles from this world, it would easily be this one (followed somewhat closely by 'Cars 3', but again, more on that later). It's a film that teaches us about the highway of life and the idea that every once in a while, you've just got to pull over and enjoy the view. 4/5
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 I tend to be a little bit disconnected from this particular Pixar title for some reason I can't quite put my finger on. It's not by any means "bad", portrays plenty of likable characters, and it's an underdog story, which I usually tend to eat up. I can't very well argue that it's more directed at kids, because so was 'Toy Story', which I obviously have a love for. Perhaps it's just a simple matter of not being able to reach me on that deep level, as there's nothing particularly deep about this one. It doesn't really make you think so much as it's a simple underdog vs. bully story, which I've obviously seen done before.
Taking place on "Ant Island", a bustling colony works to gather various bits of food to appease a gang of grasshoppers led by Hopper (Kevin Spacey). Everything is going okay until an outcast ant named Flick (Dave Foley) knocks over the offering, resulting in the grasshoppers demanding twice as much food for compensation. It all must be done before the last leaf drops in Fall, or the grasshoppers will destroy the colony, including the Queen (Phyllis Diller), her eldest daughter, Atta (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), and youngest daughter, Dot (Hayden Panettiere). With no hope in sight, Flick makes the suggestion to seek help from stronger bugs who dwell in the neighbouring city. Seeing it as more of an opportunity to get rid of their "problem", the colony gladly sends Flick on his merry way, not believing he'll be able to come through. On his journey, Flick comes across a group of recently fired circus performing bugs; Slim, the walking stick (David Hyde Pierce); Francis, the ladybug (Denis Leary); Manny, the mantis (Jonathan Harris); Gypsy, the moth (Madeline Kahn); Rosie, the spider (Bonnie Hunt); Dim, the rhino beetle (Brad Garrett); Heimlich, the caterpillar (Joe Ranft); and two fleas named Tuck and Roll (Michael McShane). Flick mistakes these circus performers as tough bug heroes, and brings them back to the colony to fight the grasshoppers. However, the performers are under the impression Flick is a talent scout, looking for an act. It could turn out to be the dumbest thing Flick has done yet, but it could also turn out to be a happy accident, with the right mindset. I've always enjoyed this movie for the fun, underdog adventure that it is, but there's nothing all that special about it to me. To try to find a deeper meaning to this one is like trying to find the gold at the end of the rainbow. As mentioned earlier, it's quite simply your average underdog hero vs. bully, or 'David and Goliath' story, and the big takeaway is really just that the smallest person can make a difference, or not to judge people too quickly as they may serve a bigger purpose than you think. To be perfectly fair, however, Pixar was still a very new thing, and as it's trying to speak to a whole new generation of kids, so my "brush-aside" opinion on the film should be taken lightly. If you want a good underdog story you can show your kids, I'd still consider this a good place to turn. Regardless of the old idea behind the plot, there's still quite a lot to enjoy about this movie. The voice acting is well-played, and the side characters here are generally likeable. By the way, I forgot to mention John Ratzenberger (who we recently say play Hamm in 'Toy Story') comes back to play P.T. Flea (head of the circus who initially fires the performers). Beyond that, however, technically speaking, this pushed what CG animation could do forward a little bit. One interesting thing about exploring early CG titles is their somewhat ground-breaking takes on environment, and if there's anything I can really give to this movie, it's the world these bugs live in. If you were to zoom out, it would only be a few hundred square feet, according to sources; yet in the movie, it's a whole world. It's interesting to think of things taking place in an area no bigger than say, perhaps your living room. At the end of the day, 'A Bug's Life' isn't as impactful as 'Toy Story' was, and it's not as impactful as a lot of the titles to follow, but it is still a lot of fun for what it is. I very much appreciate the environments, and a lot of the different and interesting ideas that take place in a bug world - for example, using lightning bugs to light up billboards (I hope they get paid well). I believe this was also the first animated film to contain bloopers in the end credits for a funny way to cap things off. At times it's just dumb toilet humor, but others are fairly clever in their execution. Either way, animated outtakes were something new and different for the time, and still pretty entertaining. For as much as this one is only just "decent" to yours truly, there's bound to be plenty here others might like more, so I still recommend giving it a look for yourself, if only for a fun time. 3/5  Back in 1995, at the age of 13, I was pretty fascinated by CG animation. It all started for me with 'Reboot' on YTV, circa '94. Coincidentally enough, the show was generally preceded with a bumper series called 'Short Circutz', among which was my first glimpse of Pixar animation; Jon Lasseter's 'The Adventures of André & Wally B'. At this point, Pixar was still known as The Graphics Group, originally under Lucasfilm, but would eventually break off and create cinematic history with 'Toy Story'; the very first in an eventual long line of full-length CG animated films.
'Toy Story' starts out on a kid named Andy's (John Morris) sixth birthday. Much to the dismay of Andy's favorite toy, Woody (Tom Hanks), Andy unwraps a new action figure known as Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) who poses a potential threat to replace Woody as Andy's new favorite toy. In an attempt to try to get rid of Buzz, Woody knocks him out of Andy's bedroom window, and when Andy grabs Woody to go with him to a restaurant called Pizza Planet, Buzz hitches a ride (having fallen outside). Eventually the pair's squabbling leads to their disappearance from the family car, and capture from Andy's neighbor, Sid; a kid who delights in torturing, disfiguring and destroying any toys he can get. Now it's up to Woody and Buzz to set their differences aside and try to work together in order to get back to Andy in time for moving day, so they won't get left behind. This would admittedly become the beginning of the 'Toy Story' formula in that they all seem to involve an escape from somewhere, and the need to get back home. Although there's a truth to that, I wouldn't say it stifles the creativity too badly. Each time these toys are trying to "escape", although it's for the same reasons, there's always a difference in what fuels their need to escape. In the first chapter's case, it seems as simple as survival. It's quite literally "get back to Andy, or die." It's topped with Woody's love for Andy, but it doesn't seem nearly as obvious here as it is in the sequels. Of course, we're also introduced to a handful of other toys along the way. Among the favorites are a Piggy Bank named Hamm (John Ratzenberger - who will be in a lot of these reviews), a T-Rex named Rex (Wallace Shawn), a Slinky Dog named Slinky (Jim Varney), Mr. Potato Head before he became a problem (Don Rickles) and Woody's apparent love interest, Bo Peep (Annie Potts), an Army of little green soldiers (lead by R. Lee Ermey), and a group of Pizza Planet aliens (Jeff Pidgeon). Pretty much all of these characters are mainstays throughout the series, each representing various strong personality types, and they all add a little something to the mix. It's neat to know I actually had some of these toys in my childhood, like Mr. Potato Head, and most kids my age had some sort of toy dinosaur. In a way, that expands the nostalgic factor of the movie beyond it just being from my youth. One of my reasons for the big Pixar marathon is to see if there's a deep, personal takeaway from each of them like I found with 'Soul', late last year. In the original 'Toy Story', I think the trouble they run into is basic enough that the takeaway isn't necessarily deep or profound. Woody has to cope with his jealous feelings for the "new kid in town" and Buzz has to really come to terms with reality, but while realizing reality can be a good thing too. He even ends up doubting himself, thinking he's insignificant, but Woody has to convince him he's still loved and wanted by Andy. We all have moments like that, especially in our youth, and this is a film that gets the right message across in that regard - you are not as insignificant as you might think you are, because someone out there still loves you. Speaking for myself, I still don't find this one quite as deep as any of the three chapters that follow it, but in many ways it's still a very solid film. On a technical level, it's a massive achievement, and something like plastic toys was a great way to go when it came to early CG. I'd say this is one of the more fun movies in the Pixar library, and it doesn't leave you thinking and pondering so much as leave you with a smile on your face. It brings a lot of nostalgia to the table for me, in more ways than one. In fact, of the Pixar library, I would probably consider this one the go-to for nostalgic purposes altogether. Sometimes you just need to take a trip down memory lane, and between the portrayal of one's carefree childhood days, and simply being there for something cinematically groundbreaking, it serves that purpose well. 5/5 |
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