Onward

I should preface this by saying: I saw this movie at the beginning of March, before things went crazy. I've had this review ready to go for awhile, and I just haven't been able to post it until now. 

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Onward is the latest film from Pixar. The movie takes place in a fantasy world where magic used to exist. The fantasy creatures that inhabit the world invented technology and simply use that because it’s easier than magic. Brothers Ian and Barley (voiced by Tom Holland and Chris Pratt respectively) find a a spell gifted to them by their long-dead father for them to see him for one more day. I love the world this movie sets up because it’s something I would have have never thought of, or considered. The humor really works well for me. One of my favorite things about the film is the biker gang made up entirely of pixies with anger issues. I also kind of love the idea of a centaur being so lazy he just kind of uses a car to drive everywhere. Because this is a Pixar movie, you also get those emotional moments, and those work really well. They are used effectively to help build the characters. In some respects, I didn’t necessarily see all of them coming. They work in the context of the story. The road trip and quest stories aren’t really anything new, I will admit. That said, for the story this movie presents, it works pretty well. I love the voice cast too. Naturally, Chris Pratt and Tom Holland are reliable in their roles. I also kind of love Octavia Spencer in the role of the manticore. The manticore is a pretty enjoyable character in and of herself. She used to be an adventurer, but gave it up to run a restaurant. Overall, the story might be somewhat familiar, but I don’t think it really matters that much in the case of Onward.

9 / 10