Notes, page 10

This is actually the best Marvel movie???

Fun to watch, extremely cool, wholly original. And not a single “crossover event” to be seen. The Marvel movie I’d been waiting for since Iron Man.

Entertaining and well executed. Too bad there’s nothing original about it.

A far cry from the original’s simplicity and earnestness, but these giant robots still tickle my fancy. I had a blast watching it.

The amount of distinct stuff happening in this movie is bonkers — it felt like an entire mecha anime series crammed into a couple of hours. I really wish it could have been made as a 10-hour TV show that actually took the time to linger and explore all those ideas.

Almost okay. Yet another nostalgia grab that fails to be anything more.

I have no idea how to assign a rating to this, so I won’t.

Schadenfreude aside, I mostly just wanted it to be over. Yet I’m somehow glad I watched it. I can understand why people latch onto it, but I’m not counting myself among them.

It’s almost impossible not to love this film — it’s adorable and wholesome and beautiful. I find it great to see Pixar’s push for diversity keep paying off, and their technical prowess keep noticeably improving, ever on a league of their own. The sheer vibrancy, scale, and depth of the design and animation work that went into this film is astounding.

I cried on cue every time I was supposed to. The tearjerking formula is as effective as ever, yet feeling more and more predictable and manipulative, no matter how well-intentioned.

Brad Bird says “animation is not a genre”, but I’m afraid Pixar movies might be turning into one — with very specific and recognizable themes, tropes, and character arcs. I’d really like to see a wider range of story types coming from Pixar, maybe even exploring the direction the excellent Borrowed Time short went in. Let’s see what Bird does with Incredibles 2 this year, though I’m not holding my breath for a revolution.

Sharp wit, fantastic acting, and all the panache of a big Oscar film. But story-wise, doesn’t seem like a particularly worthwhile exploration of any of the themes it presents — small-town America, anger, hate, blame, redemption — they’re treated heavy-handedly, often sacrificing depth for the sake of being funny or provocative (oh god, the daughter scene). That shallowness might be intentional, but it left no room for me to empathize with any of the characters.

Instantly charming, emotionally charged, and flawed in all the right ways. A restrained, impeccably edited 90-minute runtime. I came in optimistic, but I never expected a perfect coming of age film.