Luca,
Soul, Onward, Toy Story 4, Incredibles
2… the last five movies released by Pixar.
The
other day, I saw an article blurb on the home page of an entertainment-news-based
web site. It basically wanted to know why Pixar movies weren’t
as good as they used to be. To that, I ask you to look again at
that list of their most current five releases: Luca,
Soul, Onward, Toy Story 4, Incredibles
2.
My
response is simple: Pixar fading? They have to be kidding.
Out
of that batch of five you can use words like classic, ground-breaking,
extraordinary, and fun. All of them are good, enjoyable films.
Not a clunker in there. Pixar is doing just fine, thank you very
much. And the quality of their productions continues at a high
level.
The
crazy thing is, any run of Pixar’s history includes this type
of quality. Tenth through fourteenth movies? That would be Up
(and, we could just stop questioning anything about this group
of movies after the segment featuring Carl and Ellie, which is
beyond masterful), Toy Story 3, Cars 2, Brave
and Monsters University.
The
point is, at any point in time since their first feature film
releases, Pixar has a movie in production that any studio would
be proud to claim as its finest work ever.
Let’s
step to the side for a moment and consider another Disney branch.
Marvel. It seems as though every Marvel project is greeted by
explorations of the company’s latest challenge. Can they survive
using what many would consider a b-list of heroes? Iron Man took
care of that. Can they create a watchable film that has a decent
story and treats an ensemble cast with respect? Avengers-based
efforts answer that one. What to do after Iron Man? Can they work
with Sony to keep Spider-Man on screen? Will the Disney+ efforts
be good? And with every new effort, the questions are rephrased
and asked again.
Eventually,
you have to stop questioning things. Undoubtedly, there will be
projects that don’t reach the levels of the legendary stuff. But
the success and quality overall eventually comes to reflect both
the company whole and the individual projects.
Back
to Pixar. Same idea. When you look over the roster of films, shorts,
and more, there comes a point where Pixar gets a nod for what
they’ve done and continue to do.
So,
why do people do it? Why are they waiting to see the giant trip
and fall? And, it creates a funny twist… after so much consistent
quality, does one or two misfires really reflect troubles? And
for the answer, I’m headed back to Up.
The
sequence I mentioned a moment ago is, for me, one of the most
amazing sequences in any motion picture. It involves Carl and
Ellie getting married, buying a home, and sharing their lives.
It contains moments of unlimited joy and incredible heartbreak.
It is life and love and so much more. Smiles and tears. Not a
moment of dialogue. Perfection.
There
are people that look to Inside Out and Brave
and any of the other Pixar films, and they see moments that have
the same impact upon them that the stretch of Up has
upon me.
I
suppose it’s in out nature to wonder when the ride will end. That’s
the big question about life, right? Well…
Stop.
Stop
wondering about if or when the Pixar run will end. Just enjoy
the ride they’re offering.