Movie Review: Cars 2

 

Cars 2, yet another one of Pixar's sequels, is an ambitious adventure set around the world that somehow doesn't quite capture the goodness of the original.  The first film was about a race car finding his way into the big leagues.  How to win big but enjoy the small stuff, the stuff that really matters.  The character that helped him realize that in the original, Doc Hudson is not here anymore as the actor who voiced the character, Paul Newman, had passed away.  There is a small touching mention of him here but then story is shifting and moving ahead fast away from Radiator Springs.  Directed by John Lasseter, I guess I was expecting the same Midas touch as the rest of the films but I couldn't help but feel something was lacking.  I did enjoy myself at the film because there is so much to take in. The Grand Prix is a race around the world in Japan, Paris, Italy and London and it is spectacular.  

Earlier this year, I was amazed and pretty impressed with Blue Sky Studios' Rio in that they managed to show the entire city of Rio de Janiero.  Well, that was nothing.  Pixar shows us Tokyo, Paris, Porto Corsa (a fictional Italian city) and London all in one movie.  The details are stunning. I was especially in awe of the Italian coastline shown in glorious details.  The sets are something else.  And the attention to detail in the cars in every country.  I'm speechless.  There is a lot of hard work put into this and it will be fun to spy the exact details in the next viewing too.  The different cars include the "Popemobile", car cameos from Jeff Gordon and Lewis Hamilton, the geisha cars of Japan and I could not get over the Queen and her grandson Prince Wheeliam.  Love it!

There were too many new characters to keep track of in this film but I like the two main British cars, Finn McMissile (Michael Caine) and Holly Shiftwell (Emily Mortimer).  How cool is it that Michael Caine voiced a Pixar character!  Finn and Holly, in a mix-up, come to believe that Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) is an American spy and things get very confusing after that.  I was just enjoying the changing scenery and the race around the world to get involved in the sub-plots.  All the new characters meant we didn't get to spend as much time with the older characters.  Sure, there's a race around the world but I really would have like to see more of Lighting McQueen and Sally.  

Overall, this is a film that will be enjoyed by kids especially young boys will love as the race scenes rival actual car races but personally I feel will have you yearning for the sweetness of the original.  I know the Cars universe is a marketing giant but I think we don't need to revisit it for another feature.  The shorts of the Cars universe are excellent and I do hope they continue it.  Just like it was lovely to see the Toy Story gang again in the short Hawaiian Vacation.  With the announcement of more Pixar original, I think that's the way the future's headed.

 

Directed by John Lasseter, Co-Directed by Brad Lewis, Written by Ben Queen, John Lasster, Brad Lewis, Dan Fogelman, Produced by Denise Ream, Music by Michael Giacchino, Editing by Stephen Schaffer, Art Directed by Jay Schuster.

Voice Talents of: Owen Wilson, Larry the Cable Guy, Bonnie Hunt, Michael Caine, Emily Mortimer, Eddie Izzard, John Turturro, Tony Shaloub, Thomas, Kretschmann, and many more.

Rating:

Cars 2: The Royal Edition!

Let's kick things off on the day of the royal wedding with a little bit of royal indulgence via Pixar, shall we?  As you may know, London is one of the pit stops in the Cars 2 universe releasing this June and today let's see the city through Pixar's eyes.  Also, the good folks down at Disney Pixar released this funny teaser trailer and poster via Stitch Kingdom that features a cameo by Her Royal Highness, the Queen.  Just in case you couldn't make it to London.

(Poster: Stitch Kingdom)

Reason #64868798453168 why I love Pixar.  Sigh!

The Mega Poster Post: Abduction, Cars 2, The Change-Up and more!

Taylor Lautner uses his one expression on the Abduction poster.

I love this Cars 2 banner poster that's also currently serving as wallpaper on my computer.

Ryan Reynolds and Jason Bateman swap lives and bodies in The Change-Up.

More posters for Hangover Part II, Pirates 4, Mr. Popper's Penguins, X-Men and more after the cut.

Trailer Time: Super 8, Cars 2 and The Smurfs

Get ready to be "smurfed" this summer! The cute blue Smurfs that we loved as kids as back in a full length CG feature set in New York. Also starring Neil Patrick Harris, Jayma Mays, Sofia Vergara and Hank Azaria as Gargamel, get ready to go blue in The Smurfs!!

Cars 2 goes around the world in this second trailer from Disney Pixar. Lighting McQueen and Mater get involved in an international espionage ring with a whole cast of new characters. This is going be such a fun ride!



And finally my personal favorite, a new Super 8 trailer showing more story and hinting at the monster behind it all. I don't know what I love more, that it's directed by JJ Abrams (Alias, Star Trek) or even produced by Steven Spielberg (E.T.), but the icing on the cake is Kyle Chandler (Friday Night Lights) as the dad/sheriff of the town of the mysterious train accident and absolutely goosebumps inducing score of Michael Giacchino that is giving me some 80s John Williams nostalgia. Can't wait to listen to the entire score on my iPod. Without further adieu, here's Super 8!

New Cars 2 characters!

Well, we all seen and heard about the new characters, Finn McMissile and Holley Shiftwell in the new Cars 2 trailer.  This is in addition to the old favorites, Lightning McQueen and Mater who are returning for an around the world tour.

In the last few weeks, though, many new characters who will become familiar to us when we watch the movie have emerged.  My favorites so far are Carla Veloso and John Lassetire!  Get it, Lassetire, a play on John Lasseter, the director and one of the heads of Pixar.  Have a look!

(Pics: The Pixar Blog)

Around the World with Posters: Animation Edition

It seems all the animated movies releasing this year decided to debut some new posters around the same time.  Here's a look at Rio, Cars 2, Kung Fu Panda 2 and Winnie the Pooh. 

   

The Furious Five plus Po in this Spanish Poster of Kung Fu Panda 2

The Hungarian Poster shows us some possible destinations that Cars 2 is headed to.

Meet the leads of Rio, Blu and Jewel in this new character poster.

Meet the comic reliefs.

And the sidekicks.

And the henchman.

And finally, the cutest poster from Winnie the Pooh.  Poor Piglet!

Mega Post of Movie News: Spiderman, The Hobbit, Lincoln, and The Dark Knight Rises

I've been a bit behind lately with the news posting mainly because real life has been catching up and since it's the end of the year there are many things to finish up.  Here's a massive news post of all the goings-on of note in the last month.

• Lots of news to report from the Spiderman reboot/prequel but sadly, still no title.  You're killing me here.  Decide already!  

-Dennis Leary will play the father of Gwen Stacy (Emma Stone).

-Campbell Scott and Julianne Nicholson are in talks for the parents of Peter Parker (Andrew Garfield).\

-Irfan Khan (Slumdog Millionaire, Namesake) is being considered for a 2nd villain.  Hmm, I wonder who he'll play.

• The Hobbit has its music composer: Howard Shore
• It's confirmed.  The voice cast for the new Cars 2 movie  I'm so excited that Michael Caine is voicing a character and it's an Aston Martin.  Pixar brilliance!
• My favorite director, Christopher Nolan, is set to receive the first ever Visionary Award from the Visual Effects Society (VES).
• Both Christian Bale and Chris Nolan say that the upcoming The Dark Knight Rises would be "it" for the Batman Saga.  Never say never!
• Daniel Day-Lewis will star as Lincoln in the long in the making biopic to be directed by Steven Spielberg. This coming as the same time as the other Lincoln movie, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter.  Coincidence, I think not.
• Were you amazed by the gorgeous animation of "The Tale of the Three Brothers" in Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1?  It was an outstanding little short film within a film and the director, Ben Hibon, is getting the recognition he deserves.  Hibon will direct Pan, a very dark take on the Peter Pan tale.  Kudos!
• This past March, Tom Hanks presented Kathryn Bigelow with Best Film Oscar for The Hurt Locker.  I'm sure he must have whispered to her backstage, Hey, Congratulations and keep in mind for your next film!" What do you know? He's in her next film.  The good stuff goes down only at the Oscars. 
• Hans Zimmer will be the composer for the new Superman: Man of Steel reboot.  It's going to be tough to top John Williams iconic score but I'm sure that Zimmer is up to the the task.  I'm actually curious as to how he'll tackle it.  
• Ricky Gervais and Emily Blunt are the newest names to cameo in the Muppets Movie.  Does anyone remember when Ricky visited Sesame Street?  Keeping my fingers crossed for a repeat.  
• The newest show to get a movie update? That would be 21 Jump Street, and the undercover cops posing as high-schoolers will be Channing Tatum and Jonah Hill.  When did this become a comedy?  
• J.J. Abrams Star Trek was a big hit and everyone is keen to find out what is the next one going to be about.  The writers reveal that they are looking to get inspiration from some old Star Trek episodes for the sequel.  

Finally, the awards update of the week, the Golden Globe nominations are already in the mail and will be announced on December 14th.  What movies and actors do you think will be named?

Article of the Day: A must-read Vanity Fair article on Johnny Depp by Patti Smith.  He discusses Jack Sparrow and how Disney executives were all nervous by his take on the character.  

Cars 2 Poster and Trailer Revealed!

It's finally here!  Following the teaser trailer a couple of weeks comes a new look at the summer animated movie featuring new characters and new adventures to go on.  Get ready for Pixar's 12th animated film, Cars 2!

Teaser Poster

Lightning McQueen and Mater on the run....do I spy the new character Finn McMissile there in the corner?

Here's a quick look at what the film is about:

Synopsis: Star racecar Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2” when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage.  Torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret spy mission, Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world.  Adding to the fast-paced fun is a colorful new all-car cast that includes secret agents, menacing villains and international racing competitors.

Pixar News Update!

Some good news and some bad news coming out from Pixar.  Let's lead with the bad news.  Brenda Chapman was supposed to be Pixar's first female director on a movie that featured a female lead.  But now, only Brave will have a female lead in Merida as Chapman has stepped aside and now Mark Andrews will take over.  I had hoped this wasn't true but there you go.  There are so few female directors out there and especially those in the animation industry.  I hope the movie doesn't suffer for it but it's highly unlikely.  Pixar has been in this spot before with Toy Story 2 and Ratatouille and the changes just made the movie that much better.  We'll see you in your next project, Ms. Chapman.

First the Cars 2 teaser trailer was just released and now some gorgeous concept artwork to confirm that the story indeed is taking place on the international circuit.  Empire Online has the first images.  They also report that the animated short preceding the film might have Toy Story characters.  Might we see Woody and Buzz Lightyear again?

London, England

Paris, France

Off the Italian coast

Through the hills of Japan

Thursday's Teaser Trailers

It's two for Thursday!! First up, Simon Pegg and Nick Frost (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz) are back together to bring you Paul, a road movie about two friends who befriend an alien and help him hide from the US government.  Paul, an CG alien will be voiced by Seth Green.  Also in the cast are Jane Lynch (Glee), Jason Bateman, and Kirsten Wiig.  Bring on the laughs!



Up next is Cars 2 releasing mid 2011. Not much info is released for this on but it seems like Lighting McQueen and Mater will be back and maybe even be spies. There's also been word that most of the action in this film takes place on the international circuit. I'm sure the next trailer will definitely have more details.