Jack Black presented the 2009 Academy Award for Best Animated Feature Film with Jennifer Aniston. Black revealed why animated films were such a good source of income for him: Whenever he made a cartoon of his own, he would bet all his earnings on Pixar winning the Oscar. Sure enough, WALL-E won that year. Ratatouille won the year before, and Up won the year after.
Why all the praise for Pixar? Didn't we all have a good time watching Shrek and Madagascar? Doesn't Pixar take forever making just one movie a year? Wasn't WALL-E boring, and wasn't Up sad? What is Pixar trying to accomplish?
I was relieved in 1995 when Toy Story premiered. The first computer-centric movie most of us remember was Tron, and funnier jokes than I could ever think up have already been told about that movie. Most other computer animated shorts were bizarre, produced only to show off the technology used to make them. I never knew that Pixar had been making cartoons with actual stories and characters for years already. Pixar didn't just want "oohs" and "ahs." They wanted "awwws." They wanted to capture hearts and inspire creativity. Toy Story merely reflected Pixar's creative vision on a larger scale.
CGI cartoons came from other companies, and I enjoyed them, too. Then came Finding Nemo. The trailer didn't impress me, but a friend told me the movie was "way good." I was not prepared to invest emotionally in the movie as much as I did. I started to notice Pixar films described as Amazing and Awesome, where other cartoon movies were Funny or A Good Show. Then came Ratatouille. Critics love it, while many of my friends barely remember that it was released. It was no blockbuster, and it didn't try to be. Like Remy, the main character, the movie itself strove to be it's own unique self, not imitating any corporate formula for success. I realized that Pixar was doing all it could to avoid making the same movie twice. Even Toy Story 2 expanded the mythology and characters of the first movie without retreading old ground. Each movie has unique themes and personalities, from plots as grand as a planet-wide renaissance to conflicts as simple as losing popularity.
Since my realization in the movie theater I have wanted to share my thoughts about Pixar movies, or at least sort them out for myself. When I meet someone who didn't quite "get" why one movie or another was worth seeing I tend to become Pixar's defender. I'm a college-trained composer who loves to see what techniques or strategies other artists use to succeed. The movies aren't perfect, and I have a bone or two to pick about Cars. But by and large (hee hee), Pixar for me is ultimately what happens when everything goes right on a project. Every department seems to share a common desire to serve the story, not just to be clever or zany. Thanks to them and their work I know better what to expect or insist of other movies. I feel connected to the artists as I watch their movies, because they know how to communicate clearly what's in their hearts. That is what they set out to accomplish. That's why critics and friends of mine think their movies are Amazing and Awesome.
Before I distance anyone from reading with threats of boring, English Class debates (Not that there's anything wrong with that. Some of my best friends are English majors), let me promise to work on my written sense of humor. I want it to be a good time, so anyone who reads is welcome to post comments or send me suggestions on what to point out in upcoming movies. (surgebro@yahoo.com please no spam or chain letters.) I should also warn you that for me to do what I want to do with this blog, I will spoil endings and plot twists. I won't take on Toy Story 3 for a while, so you're safe on that one for now. But as for the others, I figure that if you really wanted to see that one, you would have by now. I mean, seriously. Where were you that night?
We'll start with Toy Story and consider each movie chronologically. We'll talk about each movie's message, characters, technical innovations, and music. And I hope to tie each one to what I believe to be the underlining theme to Pixar's movies: The Old giving way to the New, and the New receiving inspiration from the Old.
