CARS

"Holy Porsche..."

Over the past twelve years the moviemaking team at Pixar has wowed us. Each movie they make is an innovation in itself, from the very beginning with Toy Story. What has separated Pixar from the rest of the CGI-animation field is their insistence on always telling a poignant, meaningful story. No matter how incredible the visuals are (and they are always great), the characters and the emotions they feel are the most important piece in a Pixar animation studio.

Pixar VP John Lasseter directs Cars, Pixar’s seventh film. Ever since he was a child spending time in his father’s auto shop, Lasseter has wanted to tell a story about his passion for cars. This may be his opus. Cars is a typical Pixar film, a heartfelt story wrapped in industry-expanding visuals.

The film opens up with the rev of engines and the roar of a crowd. Lightning McQueen, as voiced by Owen Wilson, is a rookie race car on the Piston Cup circuit, the most prestigious of all tournaments in a world inhabited by automobiles. This in itself may be the biggest gamble for the film; a premise involving no actual living creatures. Where there have been people, bugs, fish, or monsters in our closets, Pixar has always had a story featuring animated beings, whereas there are none in Cars. The characters are more than relatable however. McQueen is a selfish car who wants nothing more than to have his glory by being the first rookie in history to win the Piston Cup series and have a corporate sponsor.

On his way to California McQueen takes a series of wrong turns and ends up in a town that civilization has seemingly forsaken. The setting is Radiator Springs, a town that used to lie on Route 66, but has been all but abandoned since the creation of the interstate. There are few inhabitants now; the crusty old Hudson Hawk (Paul Newman) who runs the town, the lovable tow truck (Larry the Cable Guy), and the Porsche who fell in love with the town (Bonnie Hunt), among others. Life is simple in the town. There is little action, and even less cars traveling through. The scenery is gorgeous to look at, but inspires a constant feeling of lives forgotten: nearly every neon sign on every business shop has been permanently shut off, and ‘closed’ signs litter the windows.

The arrival of McQueen to Radiator Springs is in itself big news. He first appears to the town by tearing up the road, and then wants to leave in a hurry without even a good-bye. The townsfolk don’t know which is more surprising, a race car showing up on their door, or the car being as selfish as it is. “Don’t you know who I am? I’m Lightning McQueen! I’m the fastest race car on the Piston Cup Circuit!!!! You have to let me go!” McQueen is then forced to repair the road before leaving, quite against his will.

What is an ordinary and cliché story is then told. McQueen finds the true meaning of life, and develops friendships, something he has never had before. He even manages to catch the eye of the local girl. He learns of the pain that the town has experienced over the years, but also of the camaraderie that has formed between the townsfolk.

There is no denying that this is a very average story that has been done before. What separates Cars from other films is that the message is genuine, and that it has an opportunity to affect people, children and adults alike. The characters are all well-developed, and the voice acting is phenomenal. The film is also the most tongue-in-cheek of Pixar’s films, mixing in real world people into lifelike roles (Bob Costas is an announcer, Richard Petty is the wise old champion driver, and McQueen makes an appearance on the Jay Limo show).

As in all Pixar films, the animation is better than its predecessor’s. The attention to detail is so incredible and so keen that it often looks as if the cars are real (minus the talking). The animators have made each character their own person (their own car?) due to facial personality and how they look overall (the lovable hick is a rusty tow truck, the wise old man is a Hudson Hawk).

The depth and meaning in Cars is unquestionable, as unoriginal as it may be. The message is meaningful, the voice performances are terrific, the screenplay is both touching and hilarious, and the animation is superior to any other CGI film ever made. Pardon the pun, but Cars is a winning ride.

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