Movies
There's a lot of Up-like disappointment in Pixar's latest film. What starts as something quite different, even lovely, quickly turns into typical Pixar nonsense, with cutesy ghosts and fake-emotional afterlife gibberish. It's astounding how afraid Pixar is to make films for a mature audience. Joe Gardner is an aspiring artist, but his career doesn't come off the ground and he ends up settling for a job teaching the school band. Joe gets one last shot when an old student of his calls him and invites him for a gig with one of his all-time idols. He aces the audition, but on his way home a fateful accident happens. The first 5 or 10 minutes are something completely new. More life-like character models, more mature direction (though they need a new editor, as everything feels way too rushed) and themes that feel like they could be quite profound. What follows is a complete mess that ventures in a million different directions. It's a shame they don't seem to be able to get it together, that said, it's quite a step up from earlier Pixar features.Read all
