Lightyear

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.

"In 1995, Andy got a toy. That toy was based on a movie. This is that movie. "

I think I would've gotten more out of this if they'd left out that opening text. "Lightyear" is a decent space adventure movie, the visuals are pretty great and Chris Evans gives a strong performance.

But the idea that the Tim Allen Buzz we all know and love came from this movie . . . Eh, I just couldn't get there. There's a bigger "Top Gun" vibe going on here than anything "Toy Story" related and "Maverick" did a much better job of living with failure.

I admit I walked into this with low expectations (really, was anyone asking for this movie?) but the Toy Story association is totally forced.

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.).

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.

6.4/10

The nostalgia was there for ten minutes and then it went away as the story trails away into something that just didn't sit right. While we never got firm info about Buzz's origins in the "Toy Story" films. This isn't what I expected for his story. I expected this to be an emotional journey, but there were maybe three moments where a tear was shed. The rest was just "empty" space.

The voice acting was good. Chris Evans sounded like Buzz and brought the character to life. The surrounding characters were just as enjoyable. Definitely some funny moments amongst them. I did get a few laughs out, but it felt forced sometimes to be able to enjoy the film.

The film definitely looked, and sounded, great, but it didn't do enough to grasp a love for the character, or the story. Honestly, I don't think this film was for adults to reach back to the childhood nostalgia, but rather its for a new generation to make the character it's own meaning. Flip side to Buzz was Zurg. Zurg was perhaps the biggest disappointment with how they portrayed him. Who he was in "Toy Story" is not the same as who is here, and again, it didn't sit right.

I think the biggest thing is to forget the trailer. Go in with an open-mind and make of it what you will. The kids in the theatre seemed to have loved.

Overall, not the outstanding film I was expecting even with all the great visual and sound. The story lacked expectations for a nostalgic character, but wasn't necessarily terrible, so again, go in with an open-mind.

Thank you for reading my review. Until next time.... Enjoy the show!