Entertainment Editor (1988 KP) shared own list
Nov 14, 2017
With "Coco" on the way, IndieWire has asked their panel of critics to pick their favourite Pixar movie. Unbelievably, they all picked different ones.
Inside Out (2015)
8.0
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After a young girl named Riley moves to a new home, the emotions inside her head—Joy, Sadness,...
Family
Brave (2012)
7.8
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Merida (Kelly Macdonald), the impetuous but courageous daughter of Scottish King Fergus (Billy...
The Incredibles (2004)
8.5
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A family of undercover superheroes, while trying to live the quiet suburban life, are forced into...
Ratatouille (2007)
7.7
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Despite his sensational sniffer and sophisticated palate, Remy's dreams of becoming a chef seem...
and 2 other items
Daniel Boyd (1066 KP) rated Inside Out (2015) in Movies
Jul 21, 2017
Daisy (166 KP) rated Monsters, Inc. (2001) in Movies
Apr 21, 2017
Tom Turner (388 KP) rated Soul (2020) in Movies
Apr 30, 2021
Sarah (7798 KP) rated Onward (2020) in Movies
Oct 5, 2020 (Updated Oct 5, 2020)
A Pixar film with a fantasy setting, what's not to like? It's a great take on elves, wizards and mythical creatures and also relevant to today's society with it's cultural references and technological advancements. And unicorns acting like stray cats? Genius. The plot itself is exactly the type of quest you'd expect in a fantasy, with your typical Disney/Pixar tropes (dead parent). However this story doesn't necessarily turn out the way you'd expect and I have to commend Pixar for not being predictable. Like Frozen before it, this plays out in a rather emotional and heartwarming yet fairly unexpected way. I'd be lying if I said I didn't get any "feels" watching this!
There's no real need to say that this film looks amazing. I think it'd be more surprising if a Pixar film didn't. It also has a great voice cast although my only real negative of this film is that I felt like the cast could've been given more to work with. It may have just been me not paying attention, but I struggled to even notice John Ratzenberger (which is like missing the late Stan Lee in a Marvel film).
Onward is an unusual Pixar film. For me it falls between the aforementioned categories. It's not "bad" enough to just be very good but it's not quite brilliant, although I did enjoy it very much and laughed a lot more than I was expecting.
Dean (6921 KP) rated Monsters, Inc. (2001) in Movies
Aug 12, 2017
David McK (3162 KP) rated Inside Out (2015) in Movies
May 26, 2019 (Updated Dec 31, 2019)
Remember the old Beano/Dandy cartoon The Numskulls? This takes a superficially similar approach, following the emotions (who are given form) of a young girl named Riley after her family move to a new city.
Typical top-notch animation with a message at its core - in this case, that every emotion (even Sadness) has its place - from Pixar
BankofMarquis (1832 KP) rated Onward (2020) in Movies
Mar 25, 2020
I should have lowered my expectations.
Don't get me wrong, ONWARD is a good film. It is whimsical, fantastic and fun. It just could have been better.
Set in a time where Elves, Faeries, Unicorns and Wizards exist, but they exist as "regular" people, going to jobs, going to school, living their lives...ONWARD tells the tale of 2 brothers (Pratt and Holland) who go on a magical quest to bring back their dead father - at least for one night.
It's a fun romp, but it's not a REALLY fun romp. And that's the issue with this film. It is all lower case - where the film could have been UPPER CASE (if you know what I mean). Holland and Pratt are good together, they are not GREAT together (like Tom Hanks and Tim Allen in TOY STORY or Billy Crystal and John Goodman in MONSTER'S INC.). Julia Louis-Dreyfuss is off-beat as their mother, but she isn't over-the-top WACKY as the mother. Octavio Spencer is "octane" as a former mythical creature that aids the boys - but she's not HIGH-OCTANE.
You get the drift.
I lay the fault of this on Director Dam Scanlon who's other Pixar Directorial effort, MONSTER'S UNIVERSITY suffered from a similar malaise. It was fun...not AWESOME FUN. The pacing of the film doesn't really help as there is no strong push to the goal in this film. I caught myself stirring in my seat as the film progressed...never a good sign.
Don't get me wrong, it is still a good film - the kids will like it. I just have come to expect more from PIXAR. I put Pixar films on 2 levels - GREAT Pixar films (the TOY STORY films, UP, WALL-E) and LESSER Pixar films (MONSTER'S UNIVERSITY, CARS 2, BRAVE).
I would put ONWARD in the LESSER category.
Letter Grade: B (even a "lesser" Pixar film is still above average)
7 stars (out of 10) and you can take that to the Bank (ofMarquis)
Rick Gutierrez (0 KP) rated Coco (2017) in Movies
Jan 27, 2018
LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated Finding Nemo (2003) in Movies
Apr 3, 2020
The ocean is the perfect setting for a kids film. It such a huge, largely unexplored place, full of mystery and wonder. Finding Nemo takes advantage of the vast display of aquatic colours and gives us a film that looks distinctive and vibrant.
The plot is definitely taken out of the Pixar guide book - not a bad thing of course. The opening minutes are suitably tragic, and serves as a reminder that Pixar can deliver a gut lunch when they want to, and this was still a few years before Up ripped out my heart.
The adventure that follows includes fun and action packed set pieces, plenty of comedy, and an array of memorable characters, backed up by a faultless voice cast.
Finding Nemo almost immediately earned its place amongst Disney-Pixar royalty, and it still clearly belongs there to this day.