Cars
In Pixar Animation Studio’s newest masterpiece, the roaring sounds of the track, the grinding squeal of the tires, and the deafening eruption of the engines all come to life. They are Cars. The newest characters of the Disney/Pixar team take to the streets and bring life to the every day objects we all to often take for granted. “Cars” has it all; an ensemble voice talent, colorful characters, a heart-warming story, and unforgettable moments filled with laughs for the whole family.
Our hero is Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson); a bright red race car appropriately named after the legendary actor, driver, and stunt driver Steve McQueen. Lightning is a rookie racer on the verge of breaking every world record. Better yet, he’s trying to become the first rookie to win the coveted Piston Cup. Lightning McQueen is the Tom Cruise of jet fighters. He’s aggressive, he’s stylish, and he’s full of himself. As hie ego finally catches up with him, Lightning finds himself on his way to the big dance without a team, a mentor, or even a friend.
The high class racer gets a wake up call when he finds himself stranded in a small town called Radiator Springs. It’s a seemingly helpless little town living in the past, but every car knows each other by their first name. It’s a town for cars, run by cars, in a world of cars (no humans) where even the animals and the insects are cars. In Radiator Springs, Lightning meets up with a group of other strong willed cars that have more to offer than Lightning and the rest of the world is willing to accept.
We meet Doc Hudson (voiced by Paul Newman); an old classic car who runs the town. Doc has a keener sense for the track than Lightning initially gives him credit for. We also meet Sally (voiced by Bonnie Hunt), who is a Porsche that catches the eye of Lightning in the unexpected town. Along with two Italian tire sales-cars (Luigi and Guido), Cheech Marin voices a low-riding body worker while George Carlin voices a hippie painted VW van who likes to blast Jimi Hendrix in the morning. The perfect casting of voice talent radiates the idea that cars have a much more colorful and loveable personality than humans do. Still, none of them do it better than a rusted, dimwitted, but whole-hearted tow truck named Mater. Lovingly voiced by redneck comedian Larry the Cable Guy, Mater brings out one of the most profoundly gleeful animated characters ever created. Like Larry does for Mater, each actor connects their individuality to the personality of their own unique car.
Once again, Pixar astounds its growing audience with beautifully landscaped roadways and scenery. While adding to the array of unique and loveable characters, “Cars” delivers family oriented laughs with hard hitting punch-lines and wacky situations. It’s more than enough to keep a somewhat tame and predictable storyline enjoyable for the entire two hour running time. Surprisingly, “Cars” turns out to be Pixar’s most memorable feat since Toy Story as it delivers on all the right notes. Pixar convincingly maintains its unbeatable status at the forefront of animation studios. Here is a movie that, in some crazy way, reminds us how cars are as much a part of our lives as we are a part of theirs.
Cars
Rated G for
Runtime: 117 min.
Starring: Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt, Paul Newman, Larry the Cable Guy, Cheech Marin, George Carlin and Michael Keaton
Directed by John Lasseter and Joe Ranft
