1 Hour of Pixar Facts to Fall Asleep to

put that thing back where it came from or so help me so help me so help me and cut Monsters Inc is an absolutely genius film Pixar was just operating on another planet in their early run it felt like every film tapped into kids brain waves on a molecular level our brain waves molecules whatever Monsters Inc not only captured a concept that every kid understands but expanded on it and subverted it in such a fun way they take the very simple concept of there's a monster in my closet and effortlessly build a fully realized ridiculously imaginative world within that closet an entire separate universe that explains why monsters are in the closet in the first place an entire industry built from kids screams like Nike or apple but with more Whimsy and less oh let's not talk about that right now but on top of that they also subvert those monsters relationships to the kids making the monsters terrified of children believing they're dangerous and only scream harvesting out of necessity there is so much going on in that premise and yet the film sells the entire thing within the first few minutes just incredible storytelling but with within that world you've got these great characters with their own place within that world structure and just one little kid sneaking into the Monster World completely upends their entire worldview Sully and Mike are such a great Duo built on incredible performances from Billy Crystal and John Goodman but for me the heart of the story is buo even though this was earlier Pixar and there are still remnants of the creepy human-faced issues that plagued Toy Story she's still one of the cutest characters in movie history most of my biggest laughs in this entire film are from hilarious little little kid isms that feel so genuine coming out of this character well hello there what's your name Mari but more specifically it's that relationship between Buu and Sully Sully is a character who is literally on top of the monster world as it exists he's the greatest scarer in monstropolis history he's about to break the all-time record he could not have it more made but he's so focused on that job on that record on being the best scarer that he doesn't really have much of a life of his own he doesn't even take advantage of his own clout you see that ju to position with Mike who loves his car and has a girlfriend uses Sully's poll to get reservations plans to propose but when trying to save his own neck Sully unwittingly forms this relationship with Buu and it's the core of the film you see him slowly warm up to her slowly realize kids aren't a danger to monsters and eventually form this Fierce paternal instinct to protect her at all costs he realizes that these connections mean so much more than a scare record to the point where he's willing to upend the entirety of their society everything people believe to protect this girl it's so swe sweet every cute moment between the pair just Yanks on my heartstrings and few moments in Pixar history get me more emotional than the pairs goodbye and Booze Room the way she excitedly shows him all her toys the sad look and hug when he says goodbye and of course the devastating peek back into the closet from Buu to find that Sully is gone all time man I love this film I've always been a fan but over the years this has continued to move up my favorite Pixar list these days it is definitely near the top in addition to the excellent World building in heart Waring character relationships the animation seriously holds up looking at this thing compared to its competition this year Jimmy Neutron and Shrek actually kind of embarrassing how much better it looks a great nomination and one of Pixar's best Finding Nemo is an enduring classic for a reason not only just an exceedingly fun and heartfelt film as was to be expected from Pixar but a story that actually has something to say which I guess was also to be expected from Pixar I feel like everyone talks about how traumatizing the opening sequence of up is but Finding Nemo did something super similar 6 years earlier maybe it was a bit less relatable because it's about fish and not senior citizens but Finding Nemo is actually about trauma and man the opening sequence is scary it's easy to understand why Marlin is so devastatingly scared of losing Nemo after losing literally everybody else which I think is super key to this story you truly understand his fear and trauma but you also feel for Little Nemo who doesn't deserve to be sheltered so unnecessarily but Marlin learning when to take risks and when to let go is such a satisfying Journey well the ocean is still filled with danger as Marlin expected so many of the things that terrified him weren't what he expected and the only way he made any progress in his quest to find the titular Nemo was by taking those risks if he hadn't gone with the sharks he wouldn't have found the goggles with the address on them if they hadn't risked traversing the jellyfish they never would have found the East Australian current if they hadn't found the current they never would have met the sea turtles if he hadn't opened up to the sea turtles and told them about his journey across the ocean the story wouldn't have been spread all the way to Sydney if that story hadn't spread to Sydney Nemo would never have been inspired ired by his father's courage to try and escape the tank I particularly loved how Marlin meeting the sea turtles uses actual Turtle biology and behavior to help illustrate to Marlin that sometimes you need to trust that your kids are going to make it through the fact that baby sea turtles have to hatch and crawl to the ocean all on their own it's the first thing they ever do little dudes are just eggs leave them on the beach to hatch and theno they find their way back to the big old blue but Marlin learning how to take those leaps of faith and why giving his son the freedom to take risks is important really hits emotionally you can't never let anything happen to him then nothing would ever happen to him but man I think nothing tugs at my heartstrings more than when Nemo is hearing about his father's travels hearing all of the risks and dangers he's faced just to save him something he never expected from his father the way this moment plays out is beautiful rather than focusing on the Pelican telling the story The Shot stays focused on Nemo in fact the score swells up so much that it sort of drowns out the story because the story itself is is not the important thing the important thing is the way it is inspiring Nemo and that we as the audience see that admiration on his face it's a masterful piece of Storytelling and even after they reunite they are so smart to put everything each character has learned to the test immediately in order to save Dory Marlin has to trust that Nemo is capable that he knows the risk is worth it even though failure means being caught by a fisherman again Pixar is just so good at tying a perfect little bow on these Journeys Finding Nemo is not my favorite Pixar but it's D damn good storytelling with an outstanding cast down to the side characters and my God does that animation hold up even 20 years later I mean the jellyfish scene in particular is mindblowing it's genuinely so hard to believe that this was done in 2003 Finding Nemo is a great film that certainly deserved this nomination you know I'm retired from hero work as am I Robert yet here we are oh man we have reached The Incredibles the first nomination for one of our greatest living animation directors Brad Bird The Incredibles was actually a pretty significant departure for Pixar in part because it's a bit more mature than their previous films but mostly because this was the first time they brought in an outside director to lead a project from Toy Story through Finding Nemo every Pixar project had been originally developed in house and produced and directed by that core leadership group of John Lasser Pete doctor and Andrew Stanton among others but Bird's concept for The Incredibles goes back as far as the early '90s being the first and still one of the only film Concepts that ped are adopted a pretty wild gamble for a studio whose usual approach had knocked it out of the park for five films in a row of course The Incredibles gamble paid out the film was rightfully a massive success adored by critics and audiences alike and man is it easy to see why this film is so funny has some absolutely top tier action sequences maintains its emotional hook with a focus on family and pays homage to spy films in 1960s comic books with its excellent World building it is just across the board a spectacular film they of course established the world immediately and brilliantly through old documentary footage showing our heroes talk about life as Heroes and showcasing the height of the golden superhero era all while brilliantly setting the stage for what's to come intertwining their heroism the introduction of Buddy AKA incredib AKA syndrome the wedding of Mr Incredible and elasa girl and of course the event that led to the outlying of superheroism which happens to be a foiled suicide attempt which leads to a lawsuit against Mr Incredible this movie is clearly much darker and more mature than Pixar's previous entries but these first 10 minutes just perfectly build this world and establish what these characters have lost why in the 15 years after superheroes were outlawed Bob is so miserable Pixar is just so good at putting a human story at the center of extraordinary events yeah this is a story about superheroes returning to save the world from a massive threat but it's also about a man looking back at his Glory Days and a family struggling to find their place in a world that is seemingly moved past them that focus on the family is absolutely the secret SAU here both thematically and for the perfect comedy of their family Dynamics Are We There Yet we get there when we get there Brad Bird also gave each member a perfectly fitting superpower as described by bird himself the dad is always expected in the family to be strong so I made him strong the moms are always pulled in a million different directions so I made her stretch like taffy teenagers particularly teenage girls are insecure and defensive so I made her turn invisible and turn on Shields and 10-year-old boys are hyperactive energy balls babies are unrealized potential but their abilities aren't just thematically fitting their family Dynamics also have an entire Arc and journey of their own the family really struggles to connect earlier in the film they're a complete mess really dash is getting in trouble at school he and violet are fighting at dinner Bob and Helen can barely contain them and it's especially tough on the kids who have these abilities but have never really had an opportunity to explore them given that they were born into a world where those abilities were outlawed they struggle to find their place in this world because they're forced to hide who they actually are but once they're given the opportunity to actually use explore and hone their abilities they all finally start to sink with each other the sequence where Dash and violet combine their speed and force field abilities is just the perfect blend of thematic resonance and Super Rad but Bob's journey is probably the one that hits the hardest blind to what I have so obsessed with being undervalued that I undervalued all of you Dad sh don't interrupt Bob is so caught up in reliving The Glory Days feeling needed by the world after being discarded he doesn't appreciate or embrace the era of his life that he was actually living in you obviously see how much he loves his family but he takes them for granted until he nearly loses them I can't not again I'm not strong enough the final sequence of this thing is just gas rather than be overly protective sidelining his family and fighting on his own he fully Embraces this new era of his life by saving the day with his family and they really nail this entire sequence they truly would not have saved the day without one another each character's abilities are vital to saving each other and defeating the drone at some point in this battle I've loved the incredible since I was a kid but it's a Pixar that has really stood the test of time while I geeked out on the action in humor when I was younger now I really appreciate the way it balances its themes with that action in humor it's a real Masterpiece they say was amazing he won three piston cups he did what in his cup ah cars basically the first time the general public watched a Pixar film and said me and the only feature nomination for graced animator John lcer this is such a fascinating franchise because it's actually one of Disney's highest earners thanks to the merchandise meanwhile the films are generally looked down upon and not without good reason Cars 2 in particular is not great I'm wearing maor ho however I still maintain that the first cars is pretty solid mostly disliked because of Pixar's impeccable record prior to its release plus the uh sort of confusing World building if you think too hard about it but honestly I think if cars was maybe 30 minutes shorter it would have been much more fondly looked back on once again Pixar's animation holds up even all these years later this film looks amazing especially the driving montages that showcase the Beautiful countrysides on top of that it's just a generally stylish film the races themselves are really fun and suspenseful but I also think the film does a pretty great job conveying its themes in character arcs and I honestly think they hit even harder 18 years later lightning is a character who is so focused on himself so focused on success and fame that he doesn't care about those around him or the people he throws under the uh bus on the way to success and that feels even more preent in today's social mediad driven Society than it did in 2006 I mean can you imagine if lightning had a Tik Tok we would have gotten like 10 times as many kachow kachow he's a character whose entire purpose is to drive full steam ahead as fast as possible speedrunning success when all he actually needed was to slow down and appreciate the beauty of the world around him honestly a message I really need at this point in my life as I sit here watching 99 movies in a row for work lightning taking the time to appreciate the people in Radiator Springs the same kinds of people he would have written off in the beginning of the film is undeniably satisfying especially in the sequence when he helps everyone in town and they light up the neon signs again just a really gorgeous beautiful series of events and the final race does such a fun job portraying that change in lightning his struggle to focus until his new friends show up to support him in the pit the things he learned in Radiator Springs like driving backwards from Mater and the turn right to go left from Doc all coming into play during the race and of course the ultimate Showcase of his change forfeiting the Piston Cup so he can push the crashed King across the Finish Line look the world is absolutely bizarre and raises far more questions than it answers like do not think too hard about where cars come from or the class system or why they need sleep and gas or why cows are tractors and where those come from or why the big asphalt machine Bessie is just a tool and not a sensient being like everyone else or how any of this works really many of the side characters are caricatures and uninteresting and the film is absolutely 30 minutes too long but I think the way everything comes together is very satisfying it's not incredible but it's very solid I think it doesn't get the credit it deserves Cars 2 though that is a non-starter ratou doesn't sound delicious it sounds like rat and PTI you might be surprised to hear that when I first saw Ratatouille years ago I thought it was just okay I was kind of surprised it was receiving such a huge level of hype and while I didn't think it was a bad movie felt like I could see a lot more issues with the narrative than other people could But as time has passed and the more and more I've watched this film it's actually substantially grown on me to the point where those flaws that I had seen before have actually kind of become positives I will explain but first let's talk about Ratatouille's production history because that plays A Part here the idea for the film was actually created by Yan pinkava in the year 2000 he began developing the story with Pixar but after 5 years he departed over creative differences this is when Brad Bird was brought in to replace him and this is kind of a Common Thread we're going to see from Pixar and disgraced executive John Lasser for a little bit of time here but Brad Bird is as previously mentioned an animation Legend and we'll talk about him one more time in this video so bringing him into the fold obviously inspired confidence for the direction of the film bird took the existing development work and rewrote the script and story entirely my issue with this film was always that I felt like you could sort of see how Brad Bird had frankensteined together a bunch of different people's ideas that ultimately became the current Ratatouille script it felt like a lot of disperate Concepts and elements tied together even just the various narrative devices is used you start the movie with the typical well you're probably wondering how I got here Freeze Frame into flashback as far back as I can remember I always wanted to be a rat Chef you've got that narration to help Drive the story forward which then dips in and out of the movie at seemingly random intervals and you've also got this gustau ghost acting as Remy's conscience and guide for him to talk to in scenes where he's alone which when combined with the existing Remy narration it felt a bit like a hat on a hat to me even the narratives themselves felt so separate and so wild different you've got the entire rat narrative this character who dreams of more than life as a rat typically offers you've got this whole restaurant ownership and unknown air storyline Linguini is a co-lead who isn't introduced until 20 minutes into the movie not to mention the absolutely absurd suspension of disbelief you need just to buy into the whole rat puppeteering a human being by pulling their hair storyline plus the whole review war between dastardly food critic antono and Gusto's restaurant it just truly feels like on paper none of these things should work together almost nothing about it makes any sense and yet the fact that this film is made up of all of these disperate elements and manages to coales into such an emotionally satisfying narrative is exactly the magic of Ratatouille it ties so beautifully to the very ideas behind the film and to the manner in which it was produced look at this first scene where Remy Cooks in Gusto's kitchen Linguini messes up the soup and haphazardly throws a bunch of random junk in there to try and Salvage it now imagine this as a metaphor for the the starting point for Ratatouille as a film there are some good ideas some nice flavors but they haven't been properly emphasized or honed in on in the preparation process and so Remy AKA Brad Bird swoops in and finds the exact right ingredients to accentuate what is already in the pot and what's in the pot might not make the most sense to go together it's a lot of different ideas but with the right spices the right herbs the right additions to that recipe it can bring those different ideas together and Against All Odds make a delicious soup you might look at that soup recipe and say well that doesn't make any sense like I look at all of the different narrative elements to ratou and say the exact same thing but the fact is that when all of these ideas finally come together in the big finale of the film tastes pretty damn good the entire Climax and resolution of the film fits this idea beautifully Remy's family supporting his dream by becoming the kitchen support staff Linguini letting go of his ego and giving Remy his credit Colette's realization that she lost sight of the idea that anyone can cook and Remy of course getting the opportunity to truly prove this idea in a way when I previously looked down on this film I was antono I was hypercritical of its structure and narrative devices and disperate story decisions but when I truly took a bite and tasted what Ratatouille had to offer it reminded me that those things don't always matter if the result is something worthwhile even Anton ego's absolutely beautiful review at the end of the film one of my favorite speeches is in film history if I'm being honest helps Drive these ideas home when you describe the plot of Ratatouille it sounds absolutely ridiculous a rat puppeteering a human to be a chef in a Parisian Restaurant just like how in the film they had to describe that very idea to Anton himself and yet when he describes his experience to say that both the meal and its maker have challenged my preconceptions about fine cooking is a gross understatement the way these seemingly incompatible ideas come together to form Something Beautiful did exactly that it challenged my preconceptions and the fact that this film was cobbled together from all of these different ingredients ties in almost shockingly well in one more important way it's basically what Ratatouille itself is in the film they call it a peasants dish but it was basically a food that was created as a solution for Hunger centuries ago where French peasants would create a stew out of all of their leftover vegetables whatever they had this movie was created by taking the leftover elements of another story and turning it into a hearty delicious stew that has fed the body and minds of people for years now I adore Ratatouille because nothing about it makes sense and yet everything about it makes sense it's an incredible [Music] film the First Act of Wall-E is one of the greatest pieces of Animation in all of history full stop a case could even be made that it's also one of the best film sequences of any genre since that movie where the train comes at the screen and scares you in 1896 it is absolutely astonishing how efficiently they build this world and tell the beginning of this story with almost no dialogue we instantly see the state of the earth and through the environmental storytelling infer that corporate by and large absolutely decimated the entire planet across the entire First Act every single piece of industry is owned by that chain though my favorite detail is later in the movie when we see the head of by and large is the global CEO and we also see him speaking from a near replica of the White House Press Room this time with byy and large branding If This Were a different type of video I'd probably have about 5,000 things to say about how this is just Amazon and it needs to be stopped before we all get walled but this is a video about movies not the actual destruction of Earth but what I love most is how instantly we get to know Wall-E and how unbeliev L expressive he is as a character even without dialogue simply put he's just the littlest guy he is so well- defined so quickly we obviously learn what his original purpose is and that he's the last of his kind but most importantly we see that he's a romantic he has countless keepsakes and trinkets he finds while working he watches old movies and craves connection he's sweet and nurturing we even see him care for his cockroach friend simply through his eyepiece rotations and hand movements you fully understand his feelings and state of mind it's just some of my favorite visual storytelling ever and then they introduce Eve and it gets even better Wally's fascination with and observation of Eve is so cute but most importantly their introduction brilliantly showcases personality from both robots Wall-E excitedly showing Eve all of his Trinkets and his movies is just unfathomably Charming seeing Eve laugh and break out directive to enjoy these moments with Wall-E I truly think the First Act is the best thing Pixar has ever made and one of my favorite pieces of animation of all time no exaggeration the lighter shot is simply perfect as Eve observes the beauty of the flame while wall slowly looks from the fire to Eve herself amazed and Enchanted by each but clearly more so by Eve chef's kiss unfortunately while the rest of the movie is still quite excellent it never reaches the heights of act one which is just on another level to be fair which I guess is my one real issue with Wall-E it starts so unbelievably strong and cannot quite live up through to the end but there is a ton to love about the back half as well what I love most about the second and third acts of the film are how Wall-E is well lack for a better term a and though he's really just there to save Eve Wally's infiltration of the space Cruise changes everything his dirt contamination forces the little cleaning bot off of his track his interactions with JN and Mary get them both to stop staring at their screens and actually observe and appreciate the world they live in Wally introducing himself to the captain gets dirt on his hand which leads him to research the Earth and get excited about the possibility of returning the entire space station was in this completely automated State and thanks to Wall-E they're given an opportunity to start over to do things for themselves and it's hard not to love the ending as Eve desperately races to get Wall-E home and fixed before he shuts off forever Wall-E is a really special film some of Pixar's best without a doubt it's not my favorite Pixar film but its First Act is probably my favorite thing Pixar has ever made hey I can see your house from here don't check around so much kid well that's not going to work I feel like up is a slightly divisive Pixar entry I don't really know anyone who outright dislikes it but I do feel like I know a lot of people who think it's overrated it was actually my favorite Pixar movie for years and I still quite like it but I don't have as much adoration for it as I used to that being said up is an excellent film obviously the entire opening sequence is undeniable just such incredible economic storytelling limiting dialogue to the parts when Carl and Ellie are kids and really highlighting Gino's outstanding score for the Montage through their lives together man is that score unbelievable rightfully won the Oscar the film is obviously Infamous for this opening sequence and making the audience weep in the first 20 minutes of the film but it's all done in service of the story to come I've seen a lot of people with a sort of why would they manipulate us like this sentiment but the rest of the film wouldn't hit nearly as hard if we didn't fully understand the magnitude of Carl's loss also manipulation you do know that movies are sometimes sad right if we didn't understand Carl's F life Arc in the beginning we wouldn't be able to fully grasp how hard it was for him to let go somehow Carl remains endearing throughout despite being the ultimate kagin and I think it's simply because we experienced all he went through to get to that place he is so so focused on completing his adventure with Ellie that he sort of ignored is the new adventure that presents itself the new connections he's making along the way the new reason to live Carl warming up to Russell over the film feels fully earned realizing that Russell has also lost somebody close to him his father but in a very different way I loved this moment in particular the one that needed to get through to Carl the most as Russell reminisces on his favorite memories with his father that might sound boring but I think the boring stuff is the stuff I remember the most and OB obviously this is also the reality of Carl's relationship with Ellie he felt he had let her down because he promised to take her to Paradise Falls and never did but in reality Ellie lived her best happiest life with Carl no scene is more satisfying than Carl realizing that Ellie filled up her Adventure book with photos of their life together and Carl realizing that his next adventure was in front of him the entire time he's already formed this entirely Newfound family with Russell Doug and Kevin I particularly love that Carl has to literally throw everything from his life with Ellie out in order for the house to float again so that he can save Russell just really great thematic storytelling letting go of all of that baggage so that he can Embrace that new connection but in this case quite literally when this movie hits it hits the emotional through lines are undeniable that being said there are aspects that I am not as in love with while I do enjoy Doug it's so funny watching this years's later and realizing how much this influenced Millennial humor I found this stuff super funny when it released but all these years later I found myself cringing quite a bit which I guess isn't the film's fault but in general the army of talking dogs is the one aspect of this thing that I just can't really get behind there are certainly funny moments but it just feels so ridiculous and out there that it takes me out of the story a little bit which is saying a lot in a film about a man flying his house to South America with thousands of balloons but when the dogs start flying fighter planes sorry I cannot help but roll my eyes it feels like a scene from a completely different movie that got scrapped and sold for parts well dog fighter is dead in the water any other movies we can shoehorn these assets into speaking of those balloons though I will never get over how stunning and striking the visual is especially just seeing the house floating through the gorgeous blue skies above the clouds truly one of my favorite pieces of iconography in animation history this is another that I actually watched in 3D recently and man I cannot say enough about how mesmerizing those balloons are with a little added depth up is mostly excellent it tells an emotionally grounded story story despite its characters being in such a ridiculous adventury setting yeah the iconography and the locations are amazing and Unforgettable but there's a reason why what people remember most about this film are the emotional moments despite a couple misgivings I really love this one so long partner man Toy Story is without a doubt one of the most consistently great franchises in history it feels weird that Toy Story 3 was the first of the franchise to be nominated for this award since it originated in 2001 but let's be honest this easily would have been their third nomination if best animated feature came around 6 years earlier and we'd probably be sick of it by now like how some people are tired of all those Merill Streep nominations not me though I love Merill and Toy Story for a while Toy Story 3 felt like a film that would never get made in fact when Pixar and Disney were in the throws of potentially parting ways Disney was set to maintain the rights and intended on making their own Toy Story 3 without Pixar in one early version of The Script the toys would find themselves in a who done it style mystery at Andy's Grandma's house which is not unlike the eventual story for the Toy Story of Terror special which is actually quite good the next version of the script which was always the rumor I heard when I was younger was that buzz would be recalled to a factory in Taiwan and the other toys would travel to rescue him which is maybe a little bit of a Toy Story 2 rehash if we're being honest but in 2006 Disney bought Pixar and developed an original idea that would become the Toy Story 3 we know and it's hard to imagine them doing a better job with the third installment it hit me particularly hard having grown up on the first two films and having been right around Andy's age for the third it felt like I grew up alongside him but the magic of these films is how damn effectively they build and expand on the previous film's themes I think what I adore most about this franchise is though their kids movies about toys they're incredibly existential every film is about coping with the changes or impending changes in our lives they're about the es and flows of our most important Connections in every single stage of those relationships about embracing the love in those connections even if it isn't going to last forever and to accept when it's time to move forward each film has Woody moving into a new era of his life and Toy Story 3 is one of the biggest changes as Andy prepares for college and toys prepare for the unknown while Woody is grappled with the eventual loss of Andy this is obviously the first time he's dealt with the prospect so closely the entire film he's convinced that they all need to get back home to basically live out their lives in the Attic their lives of course being Eternal an eternity in the Attic he's accepted that there will be change but he's so committed to Andy that he's okay with everyone living this unhappy life as long as it's adjacent to the life he used to know a shell of his former life which circle of hell is that Woody has to learn that though his time with Andy was important he and his friends are going to live a fuller more rewarding life if they accept that that time is over now that many of them will get an entirely new lease on life via Bonnie and they tell this story so effectively Bonnie discovering and playing with Woody is such an amazing sequence one of the greatest things about these movies is that even when the toys expressions are neutral we project their feelings onto them depending on the circumstances just like we did when we played with toys as kids you can tell that Woody is so happy being played with for the first time in years even though his expression is completely wooden one of the smaller aspects I love about this film is the way they show the different ways kids can play we see early on that Andy mostly tells stories with his toys but when we see Bonnie playing with her toys she incorporates herself into those stories she plays a character interacting with the other toys it's very cute this film is also so clever and even manages to be super emotional through those clever choices starting the film with a cinematic action sequence of all the toys during playtime referencing the play times we've seen in the previous films I love the Montage of Andy playing with his toys over the years set to you've got a friended me but of course ending the song early and much more emotionally will kind of Haunting to be honest it's also so funny I have no idea how they came up with tortilla Frankenstein Mr Potato Head but that is inspired and Ken has got to be one of the best additions to the franchise his Fashion Show is one of the funniest things to come out of any of these movies if I were to criticize the film at all I'd say that loto being a Twist villain with misgivings about how he was treated as a toy is maybe a tad too much of a rehash from the villain Stinky Pete in Toy Story 2 and while it's absolutely so fun and enjoy to watch the whole Toy Story jailbreak story at the daycare maybe feels a bit removed from the more important aspects of this story but these are honestly minor complaints because these things all still worked really well and were really fun to watch we all know that the Toy Story movies can feel a tad emotionally manipulative at this point in the franchise the Disney shareholders expect an increase in viewer tear each fiscal quarter so it's to be expected but those emotional moments always hit the trash incinerator scene is maybe a bit dark but the look on those toys faces as they all hold hands and accept that even if this is the end they're going to get there together really touching but nothing is more powerful than the final scene when Andy gives his toys to Bonnie the way he pulls back Woody before realizing it's time to let him go the way he plays with them all one last time before he leaves and I think most impactfully the way Bonnie makes Woody wave at Andy to say goodbye just a spectac ularly perfect ending to the film Toy Story 3 actually isn't my favorite of the franchise but it is a superb film in a superb franchise there's a reason this was also nominated for best picture I don't want to get married I want to stay single and let my hair Flow In The Wind as I right through the Glenn similar to Ratatouille Brave was another Pixar film with a bit of a troubled production history originally helmed by Brenda Chapman director of The Prince of Egypt Brave aimed to be Pixar's first real fairy tale however mid- production disgraced animator John Lass opted to replace Branda Chapman with Mark Andrews though it seems like this mid- production replacement was not as effective as Ratatouille that being said while I certainly think it has issues I don't dislike Brave as much as a lot of other folks with that being said can we talk about how this is another Disney film where a character turns into a bear two Nichols weird it happened twice Etc but I do think this is fundamentally a pretty strong story even if it meanders and has missteps along the way the focus on the strained relationship between Merida and her mother mostly works the deep-seated conflict between Merida's ambition and their culture's expectations not new territory by any means but I appreciate their focus on that failure to communicate the failure to get through to each other on any level when they both hold their beliefs so dearly elor's transformation into a bear forces the pair to truly learn how to communicate more fundamentally without being able to actually speak to each other they have to actually learn to understand each other and while I don't think it quite fully fleshes this idea out as much as I'd like there are some really great moments along the way plus this time nobody had to kill anybody's bare mom they were close though the sequence where they're fishing together in the river is probably my favorite and the little game of Charades they have to play is sweet and while I wish we maybe got a bit more between the pair and this chunk of the film the ending still is effective with Merida risking her life and saving her mother from her father and the rest of the tribes and with elanar returning the favor and risking her life to save Mera from mue cannot lie I got emotional during Merida's desperate pleas for her mother to return to her before the second Sunrise that would leave her a bear forever the biggest moments of the film they mostly hit for me but it's still pretty frustrating given that these moments could have had an even bigger impact had I connected to the rest of the film a bit more had that Arc had a bit more substance I felt like it was maybe one or two additional story Beats from really feeling complete I'm also not a huge fan of any of the Supporting Cast none of the other tribes folks were particularly funny I really found myself checked out during the sequences that focused on them I also felt the world itself was a bit underwhelming the magic the lore the history like I said underwhelming and I know that Mark Andrews reeled a lot of the magical aspects that Brenda Chapman had focused on in I can understand not wanting to distract from the core of the story but if it makes your world ultimately feel generic I question the decision Brave is another one of those films that feels a bit like wasted potential there is a lot that works but it's so clear that it could have been a stronger film combine that with the production wo and it's a frustrating film despite its strengths but you know it's probably the only Disney film where a baby bear dives into a woman's cleavage unless they finally greenlet my feature script Bear Necessities Come Fly with Me G Inside Out marks Pete doctor's third nomination for best animated feature and many consider this to be his magnum opus as well as among Pixar's best while I do like inside out I definitely don't love it as much as others do I think it's easy to sort of cynically criticize inside out because of Pixar storytelling Tendencies and evolution as a studio oh they gave toys monsters fish and rats emotions what's next giving emotions emotions thank you thank you I'll be here all week while I do sort of see where that cynicism comes from that's not really the issue I have here the primary setting of inside out is probably the best thing about it I really love the way the mind of each character is portrayed and the idea that memories often reflect specific emotions the way core memories shape who we are I even love the detail that each person will often have a different emotion as the lead for Riley joy runs the show but for Riley's mom it was sadness and for her dad Lewis Black can I say that curse word now there is a ton of creativity in the portrayal of inner turmoil through these emotions how these emotions interact with each other and with our memories how happy memories can change to sad memories based on how life around you changes it almost feels like there was more they could have explore just in regards to how we interact with our memories even just the idea that a character is actually the setting gives this film an entirely unique flavor that you can't get elsewhere and I actually really related to Riley's angst in this film a lot of the things she dealt with were things that I went through as a kid and when you're at that sort of tweenage time in your life these kinds of Life Changes feel Earth shattering that went a long way to help the overall dilemma feel real IC and relatable to me but the movie starts to lose me a bit the deeper into Riley they dive it's all certainly very creative the train of thought the longterm memory storage the memory dump the Dream movie studio abstract thought but I feel like the more of these ideas they tried to tie together the less cohesive the metaphor became which honestly I can forgive to a degree it's a big concept but I also just found a lot of the middle of the film to be a bit boring just like a series of various kinds of Chase sequences strung together as joy and sadness try to get back to headquarters by the final sequence where Joy was chasing sadness around I was just kind of exhausted by it okay now I'm going to say something that's going to get me fully cancelled I did not much care about Bing Bong I am typically fully on board for whatever emotional roller coaster Pixar wants to put me on and I did enjoy Richard K's performance and the way he tied to Riley's childhood but I just did not buy into the overly dramatic self-sacrifice I'm sorry it's something that feels like it should work on me and I quite like the idea of Bing Bong representing this this part of Riley's childhood that she has to leave behind I just didn't feel like that was really what Riley's internal struggle was about I guess it was more about Joy's connection to those happy times in Riley's childhood and helping her realize she's going to need to relinquish control as Riley gets older and moves away from that childlike wonder I understand its place in the story but the way the sequence is executed just doesn't do much for me I swear I'm not a monster I've cried during so many of these movies the end of the film however is undeniable I think the core Journey For Joy and sadness and their conflict with en Riley is what really works about Inside Out Joy's realization that sadness isn't a bad thing it's an important means of expression and that it can lead to healing and yes happiness the climax absolutely gets the tears flowing for me joy allowing sadness to take the lead and Riley finally being able to express the things she's felt she needed to keep inside leading to a stronger bond with her family that's just really beautiful stuff inside out is a very good film I just don't think it's the Masterpiece many others do in fact it might be my least favorite Pete doctor film which is obviously a very high bar and I'll reassess after I rewatch soul but inside out is a film I want to love but just mostly really like it's brimming with creativity relatability and great messaging but it just doesn't quite feel like the complete package for me anything to declare as a matter of fact yes hola in my opinion Coco is Pixar's last Masterpiece for now hopefully but man I have just always adored this film honestly I saw it twice in theaters and hadn't seen it in the years since and so going into this rewatch I was maybe slightly concerned it wouldn't live up to my memories but oh boy was I happy to be proven wrong and what more fitting way to reaffirm memories of something I love than with a film about holding on to the memories of the people we love they sell the family Dynamics so perfectly right out the gate you fully understand why this family is resistant to anything musical even though you disagree with it and you see how that controlling nature leads to Miguel beginning to resent that family the entire Journey Through the afterlife so beautifully explores this conflict allowing Miguel to open up and recognize the importance of family alongside his family recognizing that enforcing their own trauma responses on subsequent Generations isn't healthy or sustainable for their family and don't even get me started on the visuals of this film I truly think the Land of the Dead is one of the most beautiful inspired locations in animation history just an absolute Splendor to look at and Beyond the general landscape and layering the architecture and details within are stunning as well this sort of entryway station is clearly designed after the Bradberry building in Downtown Los Angeles and the expansion of that interior in this otherworldly setting is so inspired I think the fact that there's such excellent music throughout goes a long way for me as well any film that narratively connects with great music tends to tug at my heartstrings in just the right way and in particular the way they seed remember me throughout this film is so ingeniously executed first showcasing it as the more upbeat and beloved song performed by De La Cruz and even showing various different Renditions by other performers that the the talent show you're familiar with the song thanks to these perfectly paced little Snippets and then the recontextualization changes everything first Hector playing for little Coco revealing the true nature of the song and of course Miguel performing one last time for the older Coco I cried during both of these performances but for that final performance my face just leaks water I turn into a faucet and disrepair a landlord needs to be called fully ruined pipes ceiling collapse imminent in my opinion it's the most beautiful culminating moment in Pixar history while there are countless deeply emotional sequences throughout their filmography I don't think any one of them brings every aspect of a story together as masterfully as this one Miguel finally embracing the importance of creating and holding on to those family memories Koko getting a chance to relive the happiest moments of her childhood the entire family finally understanding not only the beautiful memories that music can enhance but the truth about their family history and of course Hector's songwriting Legacy and memory being preserved so that he gets the chance to see his daughter and love his family once again again through a song called remember me no less I think Coco is Peak Pixar A Perfect film oh my God maybe I'm putting too much stock in online discourse but Incredibles 2 has got to be one of the most overhated films in the Pixar library and I fully believe that's for two reasons one it had to follow up an absolute Masterpiece and two fans waited 14 years for that follow up of course that's going to create unreasonable levels of hype but the reality is is that Incredibles 2 is a great film no it's not quite as good as the first and I'll go over why but it Nails everything a good sequel needs to do it expands on the messages and themes of the first it expands the world beyond the scope of the first and it absolutely UPS the ante on action and in scale I'm going to be honest the hate for this thing kind of baffles me I think it's a really great time I've seen some people claim that it undoes everything the first achieves which no based on everything we know about this world there was no reason to assume that the government would just accept supers back into the world no questions asked and making a movie specifically about the transitional period showing the activists who are fighting for supra's rights to return to the public that's a perfect continuation of the previous film it's the natural place to take the story it places the world in a period of change and it puts the main characters in a super challenging position the focus on elasa girl as the primary super in this film is great and honestly is one of the reasons that the action is actually improved despite the first film having some excellent action to begin with the opening underminer fight has an unbelievable sense of scale alaster girl's high-speed chase of the monreal through new bbum is one of the coolest most creative Chase sequences I've ever seen the supra's attack on the house has such an amazing variety and combination of characters and abilities it's just so much fun it's great to see elasa girl get the spotlight but also struggle internally over whether or not they're going about this the right way and I love the way this puts Bob in the Mr Mom role his chemistry with his kids was always a highlight in the first film and that Dynamic is obviously super important to these films sure they're action superhero films but they're just as much family dramas Bob struggling to adapt to his role as caretaker while Helen makes ends meet is a great challenge for him and allows him to connect with his kids in ways he hasn't in years the look of satisfaction on his face when he helps Dash with his math the desperate attempts to make things right with Violet after Tony gets men and black the uncertainty with Jack Jack's rapidly developing Powers it really UPS the ante in the family drama Department Bob is being beaten down in an entirely new way he's used to being strong enough to handle everything that comes his way but he's being confronted by dilemmas and challenges he's never really comprehended learning a can't punch your way through fatherhood I'm used to knowing what the right thing to do is but now I'm not sure anymore I just want to be a good dad honestly I think Incredibles 2 is as funny if not funnier than the first as well Jack Jack vers the raccoon is easily one of my favorite scenes in Pixar history really everything revolving around Jack Jack's abilities delivers some of the best physical humor and biggest laughs in the series obviously the one big downgrade from the first film is the villain the idea behind screen slaver is cool enough but the commentary is a little on the nose and the identity twist was one of the most predictable in recent Disney history she simply did not have as strong of An Origin or motivation as syndrome and while I do love the expansion of the world I wish the new generation of Supras introduced in this film had a bit more substance it feels like they start to try and flesh out void and then accidentally left her whole deal in a previous draft of the script and overall it does feel like the emotional core of the first film is much stronger there's nothing that really lives up to Bob's fear that he's lost his family and relief when he finds them alive but I adore the way Dash and violet have to rise to the occasion to save their parents I wish it had been seated a bit more than just in the opening scene but this film naturally continues their Journeys as supers not just embracing their power is in the key moments like in the first film but taking the initiative to save the day they are in trouble it's to us to us understand and being validated in that decision a nice full circle moment following the opening fight oh sweety how could I be mad I'm proud and just like the first we're treated to an amazing team Showdown as the family sinks up and this time takes on an entire array of supers together putting aside their egos to embrace the exact roles they're needed for in the suspenseful final set piece Incredibles 2 is not the Masterpiece that the first is it isn't as complete of a film but it is absolutely a strong Sequel and definitely overhated to infinity and beyond ah Toy Story 4 the least necessary Toy Story sequel since Toy Story 3 which was the least necessary Toy Story sequel since Toy Story 2 it's almost as though sequels are almost never necessary and simply build on the themes and ideas presented in the previous films and guess what no matter how badly a 5-hour rant video can misunderstand The Source material Toy Story 4 is an excellent film unreasonably good if I'm being honest obviously like many I was skeptical that they could continue the franchise in a satisfying way after Toy Story 3 but because of the nature of Toy Story 4's production I always held out a bit of Hope the development itself actually started before Toy Story 3 even released and was allegedly kept a secret even from much of the higher Pixar brass disgraced animator John Lasser and Co maintained that the only reason they even considered an additional sequel is because they were so inspired by this idea and though the project ended up changing many times over its production I think this is a testament to the fact that they wanted to make sure they got it right it was never being developed for a quick Buck no matter how many people want to claim it was you don't take 10 years to make a movie for a quick Buck save that criticism for Toy Story 5 which unfortunately does feel much more like a pure money-making Endeavor but I guess we'll see while this film seems to be appreciated by most fans of the franchise there are definitely many vocal haters who don't seem to shut up about it and I cannot relate to those people any less Toy Story 4 is the continuation I didn't know I needed an amazing expansion of Woody story built brilliantly upon the themes of the first three and frankly it's the first film to really reconcile with the ramifications of a world where toys are sensient beings obviously it's easy to say these films are about talking toys because kids love toys but what makes them special is the underlying ideas that make them relatable to even the adults who are dragged to the theater by their kids and the themes for all of these films are deeply existential effectively this is a franchise about navig na ating the many transitional stages in our lives and the existential dread and crises that come with that navigation as far back as the very first film being about Woody's fears and insecurities when his relationship to his best friend starts to change and the selfish mistakes he makes to try and hold on to that exact relationship being unwilling to accept how his life is going to shift and evolve Toy Story is all about adapting to these changes Toy Story 2 focuses on Woody considering life beyond Andy and whether or not he should just move forward before The Natural end Toy Story 3 is about W struggling with the reality of the end of that relationship while actively going through it these films primarily focus on Woody holding on to a previous worldview too closely to the point where it's detrimental to himself and those around him in the first film his jealousy nearly kills buzz and would have lost Andy's new favorite toy in the second he nearly abandoned Andy and his friends out of fear of his eventual rejection and in three he tried to force all of his friends to live out the rest of their days in the Attic out of loyalty to Andy despite better options for a more fulfilling life laid out before them Toy Story 4 kind of perfectly escalates this pattern through Woody experiencing an entirely foreign stage of his life in a role he struggles to adapt to he's no longer the sheriff in a kid's room he's no longer a favorite toy Woody is so used to being the support pillar for both his kid and his friends he doesn't know what to do with himself when this isn't his role and he desperately tries to fit himself into that role despite not being the natural fit for this new kid it's that classic single-mindedness that Woody succumbs to in every single one of these films here he is convinced he has to play that important role in Bonnie's life so he sneaks away to school with her to make sure she's okay he helps her with her arts and crafts project which turns out to be her new favorite toy this dumbass Fork who doesn't even know what money is he spends every waking minute making sure forky doesn't throw himself away but what he fails to see is that he's just not one of Bonnie's favorite toys and desperately forcing himself into this supportive role when Bonnie is Just Not That Into You is not a healthy or sustainable way to live which is why the reintroduction of bow where so beautifully in the first two films she was always the most sensible and pragmatic of the toys when Woody was panicked she was there to reassure him that things could work out she's much better at rolling with the punches and taking things as they come and so it makes so much sense that as she got older and more worn down and found herself in a place where there wasn't much interest in a toy like her anymore she adjusted she started living life for herself because she recognized that that was the stage she was in just like all of us as we age and find ourselves in new stages of Life Woody had to acknowledge that his days as a beloved toy were over and that it was time to find a new way to live a new way to be happy he's like a basketball player who can't cut it on the court anymore so he retires and becomes a coach Woody's core belief is that loving and being loved by a kid is the greatest thing a toy can do and this is still true it's why he gives up his voice box and helps Gabby Gabby find a person to love her it's why in the end credits his new gang is rescuing toys from carnival games and finding them homes the reality is that Bonnie just didn't love Woody like Andy did and that's okay she is a 5-year-old child young kids are fickle they have different interests nobody loves their toys forever these are the kinds of variables that we all deal with in life and in this late stage in his life Bo helps Woody see that there isn't just one way to live the film is beautifully bookended by these two sequences when B is first taken away Woody holds on to this box and he considers getting lost with her this wasn't his time though Andy still needed him and he stayed behind and in this final sequence Woody once again has his hands placed in the same way looking back at Bow questioning whether or not he really should be saying goodbye and 9 years later it is finally his time he's done all he can to help Bonnie and it's time for him to move on I don't think Toy Story 4 is perfect the classic toys get super sidelined and they sort of dumb Buzz down a bit too much but the core ideas and the ending of Toy Story 4 are so beautiful they ingeniously build on the themes of the previous film and they brilliantly expand on what it means to be a toy in a world where toys are sension and of course they once again explore the most important Ever Changing stages of our lives through these lovable godamn toys it's a miracle and I'm really glad it exists dad he just legs onward is a film I first watched just a couple months into full pandemic lockdown and honestly I do not think I was in the right head space to appreciate a big emotional Road Trip movie because while I remember really appreciating the ending on rewatch I was kind of astounded by how much I loved this entire film directed by Dan scanland who first directing credit was the underrated Monsters University onward dives into a sort of modernized Dungeons and Dragons type fantasy world where the inhabitants have forsaken the magic of their ancestors for the convenience brought about by industry and capitalism the type of place where you might find Fantastical creatures with horns and wings working at like Jiffy Lube I am not particularly drawn to the D and D type of fantasy genre there are plenty of examples of fantasy media that I do adore but the specific type of stuff you find in the tabletop world has never quite been my thing so I think I maybe wrote off the world itself a bit too soon honestly I grew to really appreciate the ways they brought that fantasy inspiration into our more modernized Society it's not groundbreaking or anything but there's obviously real love and passion injected into the World building I also remember sort of rolling my eyes at the Chris Pratt Tom Holland casting at the time but I'm happy to eat my words because they are both so good in this any of you guys out there defending Chris Pratt's Mario performance with your life stop it Stan barley which is actually an outstanding voice performance and you know actually makes sense casting wise I do think that remembering the ending of this film and how strong it was emotionally may have impacted this recent viewing knowing where it leads I was fully Blown Away by how well the story builds itself out how meaningful every step of the journey actually is when you have the end point in mind on my first watch it maybe felt like it was a series of random fantasy inspired events playing out one after another but when you really see how each and every single event ties into Ian's list the way the story unfolds is really satisfying and the emotional core of the story is obviously this relationship between these brothers and I don't think you see many of those relationships explored the same way in other media a story that really explicitly places barley in the role of Ian's surrogate father if you believe the bridge is there then it's there but it's not well not with that attitude it's honestly a really beautiful bait and switch I was pining for this beautiful meeting between Ian and his late father you can imagine how emotional it would have been and then they hit you with the oh you've actually been watching a more beautiful father-son relationship all along enjoy this recontextualization and cry and that realization that Barley's moment with his father is so much more important than Ian meeting him for the first time hits like a ton of bricks I mean the entire film he's even being followed around by one of his only memories of his father his feet that's right Dad it's me barley actually knew their father he's the one who is still grappling with that unresolved trauma the regret that he was too scared to say goodbye and these Revelations deliver such a stealthy catharsis hitting you from an angle you never expected honestly after rewatch I think this is a deeply underrated Pixar film this might be the furthest to Pixar has moved up my ranking list on rewatch ever I think maybe the one aspect of the story I find a bit underwhelming is Laurel and Cory's side plot trying to track down the boys it's not bad it just feels like I said underwhelming compared to the rest at least it gives Tracy man a quick moment to be sketchy as hell and I appreciate that they tried to tie the subplot into the climax but it's overshadowed by the main storyline quite a bit but that climax overall is so great Ian giving up his chance to see his father so that his brother can make up for his biggest regret in life and likely the thing that has stunted his growth as a young adult all while Ian utilizes every single spell and ability that barley taught him along the way to fight a giant Rubble dragon that Rings a school bell when it Roars this is a good movie guys this is a climax where the emotionality and the cool Factor intersect seamlessly it absolutely rips I can't believe how much I undervalued this film out of all 99 films on this list it's one of the few that I was almost immediately jonesing to watch again I hope this gets its flowers as time passes because I think its reputation will only get stronger with time [Music] Pete doctor's fourth and final nomination for best animated feature is soul the first film from Pixar to be a full victim of the pandemic though this one definitely got a good amount of fanfare despite its Disney plus exclusive release it sort of felt like their jazzy Christmas present to the world after a particularly harrowing year and when it came out I loved this thing it was easily my favorite Pixar in years and really spoke to me as a creative the exploration of the spark that inspires Us and how that guides Us in the way we live our lives this was the first time I had Revisited the film since 2020 and while I did still enjoy it I've definitely softened on it a bit for one watching it within this project where I also just watched inside out there are a lot of aspects that feel a bit ret Trey for doctor and even just on its face doctor had just done the colorful little guys that are actually inside other guys and make them complex story just feels too similar swapping emotional emotions for Brady Souls didn't change the message all that much that being said I do think in a lot of ways Soul handles this in a way that speaks to me a tiny bit more the idea of core memories is cool but I think this story lends itself a bit more to a creative mindset that may be prone to hyperfixation aka me but the thing that really works for me in this film is pretty much anything set in New York for the first 7 Minutes of this I was convinced it would be the best Pixar film of all time just an Earnest story of a man living out his dream in New York City getting the biggest opportunity of his life absolutely vibing out while playing piano this thing was speaking to me but sadly on this most recent rewatch I felt a bit exhausted by anything in the great before it just felt visually so much less interesting than their portrayal of New York and as we've talked about before this is once again a Disney film that takes a black protagonist and removes him from his body this time turns him into a little blue dude and then later into an actual cat this is a pattern and it's not great guys I do think the story as presented works very well it's honestly an inspiring story about following our dreams and what it actually means to live life Joe needed to get a literal New Perspective on his own life from the outside looking in to understand the ways he hasn't fully been living fully connecting to those around him it's just a shame that it feels like Disney is incapable of having a black protagonist without putting them in an animal body but despite these issues I think Soul has a lot to say I was particularly moved this time by the idea of lost souls how they're not all that far removed from people who are just fully in the zone with their Spark vibing with what brings them joy and how being too focused on those things could actually be detrimental could prevent people from the more important things life has to offer I don't know not entirely sure why I connected with this as I watched the 94th movie for my 7-hour video analysis who's to say it's a mystery soul is a very nice film even if it continues some frustrating Disney Trends and maybe feels a bit too safe for Pete doctor after inside out it still spoke to me in a very real way and is an excellent watch I guess that's how humans swim that's embarrassing this was actually a Pixar film I missed I was kind of disappointed by the prospect of having to watch it on Disney Plus instead of in the theater but now that I've finally seen it I'm pretty upset that I hadn't watched it sooner because this is truly an excellent film I think these Disney plus releases have done these films a massive disservice and I think this one drew the shortest straw Soul was the first released and got people talking turning red had a lot of uh weird discourse surrounding it but it still got people buzzing I don't really see anybody talking about Luca and that is a shame first up the setting is absolutely gorgeous a stunning Italian coastal town it's the kind of place you picture when you think of a dream vacation but I also adored how different they went with the character designs on this one the models have way less of your typical Pixar face they almost feel like a nice blend of Pixar style and the ardman Wallace and grommet type body shapes rounder and more cartoony they work really great in this world the highlight of this film is absolutely the connection between Luca and Alberto I see a lot of people complain that they wanted this film to be gayer and I do understand that but honestly this film is pretty gay I totally get wanting more explicit representation super valid but the Friendship formed between Luca and Alberto absolutely plays out like young infatuation it's really heartwarming seeing them connect plus there's your standard jealousy issues when Luca connects with Julia and bonds with her over school in the prospect of learning I mean if you still don't see it I don't understand how there's any other way to interpret this ending the running after the train Trope is pretty explicitly romantic not to mention the parallels that Luca's family wanting to send him away have with so many experiences for unsupported lgbtq youth as well as Porto Roo's Town's unfounded fear of sea monsters and the way the characters are outed against their will I truly just found this story Charming beginning to end the characters are so likable driven by excellent performances eray was a perfectly obnoxious villain just a caricature of an annoying Italian teenager hey stop looking she's too beautiful for you the way Julia finds her missing community in Luca and Alberto the way their inclusion enriches the life of Julia's father masimo who affectionately stands up for the boys after they've been outed as sea monsters which is particularly impactful as masimo sort of embodies the stoic masculine energy traditionally associated with homophobia yet he's still fully supportive of the thing that the rest of the Town fears they are the winners convention busted good sir convention busted and in typical Pixar fashion I was in full tears at the emotional ending as Alberto gives up his own dreams and the promise of prolonged time with Luca so that LCA can fulfill his own dreams of going to school just a beautiful and touching story deeply underrated deeper than the dang ocean even yeah I just loved this film front to back turning red a Pixar film that was surrounded by totally normal discourse when it released this was the feature directorial debut of DOI Shi who is now a creative vice president alongside Andrew Stanton Peter son and Dan ganin and this was a strong feature debut set in Toronto in the early 2000s that's just after 91 if you're mysterious focusing on 13-year-old May and a relationship with her overbearing mother Ming which is definitely the core relationship in the film but obviously the big Hook is May's sudden ability to turn into a giant red panda when she gets emotional I truly just loved this story conceptually to portray that hormonal emotional pubescent time in a kid's life as this actual massive monster that emerges the fluffiest puberty Hulk I really appreciate the way the film portrayed the volatile nature of this motherdaughter relationship at that age not only the difficulties May has adjusting to a changing body but how her relationship with her mother evolves how Ming who has previously maintained a tighter control over her daughter's life has to relent in order for May to become her own person alongside Ming's own Trauma from her experience with her own mother and how that relationship has defined her and May's relationship I particularly liked the implication that Ming's more violent Panda Persona was the cause of her mother's scar on her eye just some really unique and heavy backstory that is shown not told it's just a very solidly conveyed personal story clearly defined by director she's experiences as a young immigrant in Toronto I also loved the time period setting it in 2002 and even focusing on the boy band craze that was still permeating the culture at the time I really think it captured the vibe of that era and focusing on a giant red panda Kaiju sequence for the climax that's very Johnny coded and I especially loved the film's choice to let may keep her red panda rather than banish it like the rest of the women in her family I think they did such a cool job roping in so many metaphors about growing up particularly in regards to these familial relationships the idea that while it may be important to knowledge tradition times change and forcing people into these rigid boxes and structures just as they're figuring out who they are can be super unhealthy as showcased by Ming's own relationship with her mother I love seeing them break those Cycles turning red is a very solid Pixar movie I had a nice time with it and I rate it 9 out of 11 I got to say I was pretty happy to see Elementals box office comeback after such an awful start Pixar had this really long string of originals and two of the most popular were denied theatrical releases because of the pandemic it would have been a huge bummer if they're first since just fully bombed it was nice to see that it had legs and hopefully makes Originals continue to seem viable for Disney especially because currently the future looks incredibly sequel filled that being said I did not particularly connect to Elemental there are some qualities I really admire particularly the animation like these character models are just mindblowing the way they both feel like fully formed Rigs and also particle effects the physics are insane the city itself also looks stunning there are seriously so so many gorgeous sequences and the persistent use of fire and water make for some unbelievable animation but I really struggled to get into the story the first half in particular I found pretty boring I also found Wade to be insufferable at first absolutely loathed everything he did when he was introduced why was he so intent on reporting the lum's business at first dude went so far out of his way to avoid listening to anything Ember had to say and then the moment he reported them he listened and regretted it if he was so easy to convince why why was it so difficult to convince him just to talk truly made me hate the guy and like the entire premise of this movie is that Wade effortlessly connects to people I just can't help but think that would have been more effective if I didn't hate him I do think it started to find itself in the back half once Ember and Wade actually connect and go on their date I emotionally connect to the story a lot more after Wade becomes less insufferable or becomes sufferable what's how's that term work the date is very cute in addition to showcasing more really beautiful and well choreographed animation and the music goes a long way too this is a really strong score I think ember's Arc mostly Works once they really lean into it and is obviously very inspired by real world immigrant stories her parents immigrated to this new place to give her a better life and because of their hard work and sacrifice Ember feels like she's obligated to meet their expectations whether that's the expectation to run her father's business when he retires or the expectations of what kind of people she can date I enjoyed seeing Em's creative passions flourish over the course of the film it's this thing she's always been good at and has subconsciously gravitated towards without ever wondering why and I think where their relationship works best is Wade's encouragement of ember's Dreams the sequence where he brings her to the vivaria in particular is really beautiful however what is going on with this world building this feels sweatier than even the cars Universe water people just sort of live in water like they live in skyscrapers that have pools of water everywhere and they just walk around in it all these people are made out of these elements but also those elements exist separate of the people as well would this be like humans walking around in living rooms full of blood and hair Yu I loved it visually but just felt like the world raised way more questions than answers that being said I love that Peter sa was able to inject his lived experience as a child of immigrants into a film like this I do think that that's the stuff that clearly shines through and works best about the film and I'm certain there are people who relate to and appreciate that story a lot I've got issues with elemental but there's plenty I enjoyed as well and it's a really pretty film we'll leave it at that [Music]

Channel: Johnny 2 Cozy

Views: 213,475

Keywords: Pixar, Best Pixar Movies, Monsters Inc, Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Cars, Ratatouille, WALL-E, Up, Toy Story 3, Toy Story 4, Brave, Pixar's best Movie, Pixar Ranked, Pixar Films Ranked, Inside Out, Coco, Monsters University, Onward, Soul, Luca, Turning Red, Elemental, Incredibles 2, How Many Oscars Pixar, Johnny 2 Cellos, Pixar Facts Fall Asleep, Inside Out 2, Toy Story, Pixar Oscars, Pixar Academy Awards, Pixar Best Animated Feature

Id: 5MJreXhIHlo

Length: 67min 12sec (4032 seconds)

Published: Sat Jun 01 2024