...from the very first scene, it's also a universe where racetracks, freeways and buildings rise up in a facsimile of our all-too-human world. "Who did all the construction?" I mumbled to my wife as we sat in the theater. "How could any of this exist when the cars, literally, cannot handle tools?"
David is a friend of mine, hence my pity that he was unable to enjoy this very entertaining addition of the string of Pixar seven-count'em-seven hits. I took the family, and unlike some other highly touted children's animated features that sent me to Slumberland, I found this one to be full of great details, animation so fluid and attuned that at times you forget you're watching a cartoon (the brilliant drives through the Southwestern U.S. landscapes), and a script that actually takes you on a journey, kicking off with an action-packed race.
Ulin actually makes a good point about the boundaries necessary for creating credible fantasy, citing examples from other Pixar movies which did not suppose alternate universes so much as ones unseen by human eyes, co-existing yet never trespassed. He reaches back to a particular lesson in his senior year of high school:
What my teacher meant to introduce us to was a fundamental truth of the imagination: There are boundaries, borders, rules of engagement, and even an illogical universe must have an inherent logic if it is to resonate.
Take a look at David's version and see if you agree or, on the other hand, think he's a killjoy.
Because I have a solution, thanks to the rubbery character animation in the movie:
Opposable bumpers.
2 comments:
It does seem like fantasy logic is rapidly leaking out of CG animation. Check out the trailer for Barnyard and tell me why all the male cow characters have udders.
I didn't even notice even though I've seen the trailer a bunch. Have to say that the very live audience with which I saw Cars went nuts for Barnyard, as they did for How to Eat Fried Worms and some of the others. Is it enough just to be funny?
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