Onward

When I type Pixar into Rath's Review's search bar (or search its label tag) I'm reminded of just how talented and impressive this studio is. 

More often than not they've got hits, but every once in a while they dish out some classics like Inside Out, and really close films like Coco, The Incredibles II, and Toy Story 4. 

At a point there was talk of their "slump" and in hindsight, I get it. They were leaning heavily on Cars, Monsters University didn't do much for me, and they had a couple surprising misses (i.e. The Good Dinosaur). I think it's safe to say that's far in the past and, all things considered, it didn't do much to tarnish their insane streak of Toy Stories, Up, WALL-E, Ratatouille, etc. Not to mention Soul (this summer) looks like it could genuinely be one of their best and deepest movies yet. 

Onward represents a well intentioned, and good film on their way to getting there. For a long time before this was released I genuinely thought it was a Disney Animation Studios film and that Pixar wasn't involved. It feels more like the former than the latter in storytelling, focus, and even style. But that's really neither here nor there and Onward should be judged detached from whatever Disney studio is making it. 

Being frank, Onward wasn't really gelling with me until its latter half. I was fairly bored, not laughing all that much, and not all that impressed by the story or the world building that usually Pixar is so innovative and hilarious at. This felt...generic. It was entertaining, sure, but it wasn't engrossing me the way the some of Pixar's best do. And perhaps that's the burden this studio has to shoulder now: they set the bar so high previously that when just a "good" movie comes around, it feels almost disappointing. But, I was pleasantly surprised to see that as the film went on, I liked it more and more. There were more funny moments, the real and sometimes raw heartfelt moments were there, and the animation became steadily more impressive because of changing landscapes. It never blew my socks off in really any way, but it is an endearing film that I imagine most will look back on with positive opinions of. 

5!...5 Dollar!...5 Dollar 5 Footlong!

Pixar is always talented with creating characters and Onward is no different. Luckily they have a stellar voice cast here, dipping into their next door Marvel pool and plucking out Tom Holland and Chris Pratt, who seem to have genuine chemistry in real life that translates well as brothers to the big screen. Holland plays Ian, a introverted and somewhat anxious teenager who's trying to be more bold. Pratt plays his thoughtful, but goofy older brother, Barley. At first I thought the film was going to dig into the darker, real aspects of Ian's social anxiety - but it kind of skirts by it and instead focuses on his quest to meet his father. Their father died from an illness when they were young (I was half surprised we didn't get a devastating Up-esque opening) but a magical spell brings back his bottom half and Barley and Ian leave on a quest to fix the wizard staff to complete the spell and bring back their full father. Holland and Pratt - and Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the mother for that matter - really bring these characters alive and it's largely because of them that the classic "sad" Pixar moments hit home. You'll feel it at the end - certainly nothing as intense as Toy Story 3 or Coco - but it definitely tugs at the heartstrings in a way that few animated films achieve. 

Spider-man and Starlord look like s**t here!

Unfortunately I just didn't find Onward all that funny. Part of me wonders if that's just a sign of my changing humor, but I also genuinely don't think a lot of the jokes landed. You can tell the creative team is trying really hard to build out this fantasy-world-meets-our-world idea, but it wasn't hitting the mark for me. Sure, there were a few chuckles (one in particular where Pixar pushed the boundaries by naming a gas station "Swamp Gas"...think about it) and there are some humorous instances that bring a smile to your face (tiny Pixies as a biker gang come to mind) but a lot of it either feels forced in the moment or like an afterthought. I also never felt like the film found the right balance of including fantasy elements or not. At one second it feels like a very normal world with blue characters and the next it can feel like a Lord of the Rings call back. Compare that to Disney's (yes, I know it's not Pixar) world of Wreck-It Ralph where every single component screams "video game!" and it feels like they should have gone a few steps further to really make the concept sing.

I wouldn't say I'm disappointed by Onward in really any way because my expectations were strangely lower for it. I'm bummed it wasn't funnier, but it's still an entertaining and well-spirited film with some memorable characters and moments to add to Pixar's vault. But I do believe the "raised bar" that comes with Pixar films means that films like these (i.e. aggressively "good") won't be remembered in the same way as some of Pixar's classics. Which is fine! Not every film has to be a studio's best, but I think we'll see this summer that Soul is going to remind us of what Pixar is really about. 

CONS

• Generic "quest" in broad strokes, really no surprises throughout
• I didn't find it all that funny, some of the jokes weren't landing in my theater
• World building fantasy layer and elements is inconsistent in both humor and scope

PROS

• Wonderful characters with awesome voice work from Tom Holland, Chris Pratt, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus
• Fantasy elements can be fun and create some great visuals/settings
• Did make me laugh a few times and the heartfelt moments land successfully
• Strong ending and a very enjoyable back half

Rath's Review Score | 7.5/10