Lightyear Movie Review: To Infinity And Beyond In The Toy Story Spin-Off! Pixar Movie Review

Cast: Chris Evans, Peter Sohn, Keke Palmer, James Brolin, Taika Waititi, Dale Soules, Uzo Aduba, Mary, Efren Ramirez and Isiah Whitlock Jr.

Director: Angus MacLane

Where to Watch: In Theaters

Filmyhype.com Ratings: 4/5 (four stars) [yasr_overall_rating size=”large”]

Andy’s favorite toy finds its own story in the Toy Story spin-off animated film Lightyear, out in theaters on June 17. From the start, Lightyear states that we are about to see the movie that captured the imagination of Andy, the human protagonist of Toy Story and owner of the charming toy. However, this is certainly not a children’s film but rather aimed at a youth and adult audience. This may be something that came naturally, considering that the franchise’s progression has matured as the audience has: the tone of Toy Story and Toy Story 2 has nothing to do with it. see with that of Toy Story 3 or Toy Story 4, where the messages are much more complex and developed. Lightyear goes a step further by addressing substantive issues that will require some involvement from the adults to help the little ones unravel the plot.

If there’s one thing Disney has taught world cinema it’s the importance of design. The giant from Burbank is the one that more than all the others in the history of the industry has focused on the editorial aspect of its works and has identified the password in ” Universe”. To date, the choice to face the challenge of retaining the public with a contextual network capable of overcoming the temporal expansion and the narrative disintegration caused by the thousand platforms of use may be logical or even trivial, but with numbers in hand, only they are managed to get such a positive result in that sense. To get there they took risks, they tried many ways, they experimented and experiment even today (they are even looking for a universe that can unite as many) and they were not afraid to be the first to try the tools that are guiding the contemporary cinematographic movement. The first is historical revisionism.

Lightyear Movie Review: The Story

The story tells of Buzz, a space ranger who takes on an (apparently) impossible mission: to reach hyper-speed. This effort, however, has a very high cost, every time Buzz embarks on a test trip, upon his return he realizes that, while for him the mission lasted a few minutes, 4 years have passed for those who remained on the ground. Completely taken by the desire to complete the mission, he repeats it until on the one hand he loses the people he loves, because they grow up, live and age, but on the other hand, he manages to complete the mission. He reaches hyper-speed, only to discover, upon his return, that much more than 4 years have passed, and he finds himself in a deserted world besieged by robots, in which his new mission will become to shoot down a mysterious spaceship towering above the planet.

The film begins by introducing us to Buzz Lightyear and Alisha Hawthorne, two inseparable companions facing an intergalactic adventure. An accident leaves their ship stranded on a hostile planet of 4.2 million light-years from Earth, so they have no choice but to settle there and find a way to acclimate. Meanwhile Buzz, obsessed with finding a solution to his fatal mistake, constantly tries different formulas to reach hyper speed, although this makes the passage of time different for him and the rest of the survivors. Everything will be complicated by the arrival of the fearsome Zurg and his ruthless robots, which will force Buzz to rethink his mission and learn to work as a team with a new team of recruits called Darby. Mo and Izzy and their robot cat Sox are more than just an emotional helper.

Lightyear Movie Review And Analysis

Lightyear is a film that, in general, has more potential to please adults than children, who may miss the depth of the story a bit. This does not prevent it from being loaded with positive values: perseverance, tolerance for failure, the ability to learn from mistakes, to sacrifice dream goals… Of course, for them to digest all these messages, it will be necessary for adults and children to carry out a joint subsequent reflection from which they can extract all the substance of the film and apply it to their process of personal growth.

In addition, the Disney/Pixar factory tries to continue taking steps towards normalizing different family relationships, the inclusion of underrepresented groups in adventure films, the creation of heterogeneous and multidisciplinary teams, and, in short, joining a much-needed social openness. Now he needs to address it more naturally and neatly. Along the way, sometimes the sense of humor is sacrificed, which works regularly when it appears and is almost restricted to Sox, the great star of the film who becomes the secondary scene-stealer.

The hero’s emotional support robotic cat is the main repository of something expected in this film as humorous relaxation. Voices will soon be raised for him to be a further developed character in either a Lightyear spin-off series or movie. Regarding the direction of Angus MacLane, co-director of Finding Dory and professional in charge of the animation of various house products such as WALL-E or Up, among many others, it must be said that he does a great job. As far as character design is concerned, there are many calls to previous films: Buzz is a carbon copy of Mr. Incredible and Darby is reminiscent of the protagonist of Up, although they have nothing to do in terms of personality and character.

The film is clear despite its relative plot complexity and manages to present its ideas, but it is also visually very rich. The hangar photography reminds us of Top Gun, the conception of time to a light version of Interstellar and it’s all brilliantly packaged with very dynamic action sequences where the camera moves between the characters. It is appreciated that the visit to NASA has greatly inspired the creators of Lightyear and has helped them “devise” the space suits, the camps, and the bases/camps. There are times when the environments are photorealistic and overwhelm the viewer.

In short, the film may surprise more than two due to its tone, but it is undeniable that it is an interesting entry and, surely, one of the most outstanding premieres of the week that Pixar lovers are going to be wanting to get their hands on it. Toy Story lovers will find Buzz Lightyear’s backstory in a solid animation offering with outstanding production values, albeit with few surprises. Since this is about toys: Sox! The emotional support kitten is the funniest and most likable character in the spin-off.

In conclusion, Lightyear is a visually successful animated film with guaranteed entertainment, which however gets lost in the contents it offers, never following very intriguing assumptions and ending up being a film of somewhat anonymous science fiction with a bulky protagonist. The authors try to manage it by inserting it into a very classic path, marked by the discovery of the real meaning of “home”, the acceptance of one’s limits and moving forward through the forgiveness of one’s mistakes. So goodbye toxic masculinity, as long as he decides not to travel alone, to infinity and beyond.

Lightyear Movie Review: The Last Words

Lightyear is an atypical operation for Pixar. A film with a more realistic and mature setting, which is not afraid to approach the great cult of science fiction, however, citing its fundamental narrative and stylistic traits. The result is an excellent space opera, respectful enough of the mythology linked to Buzz and the Toy Story franchise but also capable of existing as a stand-alone operation while packaging some flaws in the central act. The mixture of adult atmospheres and the need to speak even to the little ones make the film, at times, a little inhomogeneous, with a consequent decline in its central segment. However, it will be impossible, especially for fans of the first hour, not to be overwhelmed by the charisma of the legendary Space Ranger.