Lightyear

Wow I just can't believe the bad reviews. I use imdb scores and written reviews religiously and 95% of the time u think they are spot on. I watched this with my family and we were all very entertained throughout the entire movie. That should say enough. It was pretty well done and interesting.

It wasn't the best Pixar film but it definitely wasn't the worst. Why it gets such a low score on here I'll never know. I'll admit the trailer did make it look better than it actually was but it was still decent and funny.

I went to see this with my 5 year old daughter, and in the build up to seeing it - I took to IMDB to get a feel for the rating. At that time, it was a poor 5.5. My rule of thumb is, anything lower then 6 is probably not worth it - but my daughter was super keen, so we went for it. And I am glad I did. A good film, with solid principles baked into it about team work, determination and friendship. I get why the rating on it is lowish on here, it's not a patch on the toy stories, but it is worth watching. You just have to go in with the mentality of this is going to be a good stand-alone film and not strictly tied to the toy story franchise, (although a close relative.).

'Lightyear' (2022)

Opening thoughts: Expectations actually weren't low for 'Lightyear', despite its polarising critical reception and the controversy it garnered for a same sex couple and kiss. Buzz Lightyear is one of Pixar's greatest creations and more than interesting enough to warrant his own prequel origin story. Am also a fan of Pixar and of the first three 'Toy Story' films. 'Monsters University' and 'Finding Dory' were proof to me too that prequel origin stories to Pixar hits could work.

'Lightyear' didn't quite come together for me, a case of it starting off so well but losing momentum and focus. It is nowhere near as bad as what was said about it when first released and the controversy over something so brief and that was actually done tastefully was very over the top and not deserved. When it comes to Pixar's films though, 'Lightyear' is one of the weaker ones (perhaps the weakest of the non-sequel efforts) and one of the missed opportunities. There is a good deal done right, but what Pixar does so well only comes in spurts and there are too many drawbacks.

Good things: Starting with the plus points, 'Lightyear' is gorgeously animated with it shining especially in the visually inventive action sequences and the galactic backgrounds. Michael Giacchino's score is beautiful and rousing, with real atmosphere.

The film starts off incredibly well, with a lot of intrigue and suspenseful excitement. The voice acting is excellent, Chris Evans filling Tim Allen's giant shoes with great charisma. Of the characters, it is agreed that Sox is the best, so lovable and funny and a character worthy of his own series. Izzy also brings a lot of heart.

Bad things: Was a bit mixed on Buzz, he is very heroic and relatable to begin with but the more the film takes itself too seriously the duller his personality gets. Too many of the characters have thin personalities and the clumsiness of the characters becomes overdone and repetitive. Zurg is a huge disappointment, not sinister at all and instead very generic and underdeveloped with a plan that makes the viewer raise their arms up in confusion and frustration.

Pacing wise, 'Lightyear' is all over the map. With too many draggy stretches in a film that feels too much like an over extended prologue. Much of the story is flimsy, while the over reliance on false starts complicated the narrative too much and made some of the film convoluted. The script doesn't always flow and takes itself too seriously, when there is humour it only comes to life with Sox and is annoying elsewhere. The film could have done with a lot more suspense and excitement, both of which dim significantly the thinner and more complicated the story gets. The big Zurg reveal is agreed beyond awful, introduced out of nowhere, severely underwritten, absolutely ridiculous and doesn't make sense at all and succeeds in dumbing him down. From that point on it all felt rushed and the whole climax anti-climactic.

Closing thoughts: Overall, not unwatchable by any stretch but should have been a lot more considering the character and studio.

5/10.

This film seems to spark a lot of people to say that this film is completely terrible or that it's completely fabulous because it included a gay relationship in the periphery of the main story, and to an even lesser extent, a convict character who is sympathetic. So. I'll address that quickly: None of that seemed like a big selling-point or issue with the movie to me. And those reviewer who make the movie all about those things seem to say more about themself in their review than the movie itself.

Overall I found the movie better than what I was expecting based on it's IMDB score, but still far from being a Pixar classic.

The animation is very good, the story is solid even if it feels like a lot of the ideas have been done before in different ways and feels like a few ideas didn't quite work as well as possible. In some ways it reminded me of an inferior "Up". The main protagonist's circumstance were less sympathetic and more a result of his actual decisions. Overall I wonder how the movie would have looked if it had explored a B storyline for another character during some of the time-jumps. I also think the twist could have been established a little better than it was.

The voice acting for the film is fine. I didn't think a lot of the comedy landed well for me. But it wasn't awful like a lot of kids movies either and didn't detract much from the drama of the main story. Overall it will be acceptable to most audiences, with the robot cat being a likely favorite character for many viewers. Most kids will probably like it a bit more than adults and not notice or care much about the politically controversial content unless their guardians have already primed them to have an major opinion about it like them.

I'd say it's a good time at the theater and better than the average score right now of 5.8. But don't expect it to be a classic Pixar film like Coco, Up, Walle, or Toy Story 1-3.