My Review of "Onward"

Pixar animations has a very good reputation for making good movies. I have seen a few that missed the mark but for the most part they're always good. This gives me the confidence that Onward would be a good movie despite the fact I didn't think their trailer looked any good. I just looked back at what they did with the movie Up back in 2009. That movie looked terrible but it turned out to be one of their most memorable movies. They've proved me wrong countless times and so I was willing to take the risk.

Onward starts off with the character Barley describing the Onward world. Basically this world used to be a world of wonder and magic. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on your point of view, magic had taken a backseat to technology. You see magic is very difficult for the inhabitants to learn whereas technology was simple, efficient and very easy. So now you have these mythical creatures living in this land not knowing anything about magic.

Barley has a younger brother named Ian and this is basically Ian's movie. It's his birthday and he's a very shy introvert with no self confidence at all. He's making goals for himself that he can't fathom doing even though they're little tasks like inviting people to his birthday party.

Barley and Ian's father had passed away from an illness many years ago. Their mother has moved on and remarried but Ian is distraught as his father passed away when he was pretty much a toddler so he doesn't really have any memories of him.

For Ian's birthday their mother has a gift for the two boys from their late father. It was only supposed to be handed to them when Ian became 16 and lo and behold he's now 16. The gift is a magical wand, a magic crystal and a magical spell that will allow their father to be with them for 24 hours.

Ian is a pragmatist and doesn't believe in magic whereas Barley his older brother is a great history enthusiast. Barley knows exactly how everything works and tries to get the spell to work but is unsuccessful. Out of nowhere Ian plays around with the wand and he was able to get the spell to work but was only able to get the spell to work halfway hence they only have the lower half of their father for 24 hours.

Barley believes that there is a way to finish the spell. He wants to find another magic stone to complete the spell. Ian totally dumbfounded that the spell does work agrees to go on the trip to complete the spell so that he can finally spend quality time with his father.

Although this whole movie is about completing the spell to meet their father this movie is actually about the family unit. They discover that the bond between siblings and parents is very strong and there's a few twists and turns along the way.

First I would like to address how crazy CGI animation is starting to get. There were certain scenes that I could have swore were photo realistic despite knowing the fact it's all CGI. They have gotten so good at these animated films that they somehow made it seem natural for these cartoon looking creatures in realistic forest and rocky environments. They just keep getting better and better after every movie.

I thought that the voice actors did a fantastic job. The only weird voice acting was probably from Chris Pratt who plays Barley. It's not bad weird. I just find that his voice is so distinct that you identify his face with the voice and it sometimes takes away from the Barley character.

The movie does have a little slower start than we're used to with Pixar movies. It goes through a lot of explanation to get it in our heads that this is supposed to be a magical land that has been stripped of it's magic in favor for technology. Obviously they're trying to tell us that sometimes taking the road less traveled is sometimes the better route to take. This is an important lesson in a day in age where everything is instant and on demand.

They also tell the audience that we should listen to our gut when making decisions. Taking the route you're being told to may sound like the easier way of doing things but may ultimately get you to the wrong destination. Basically like hundreds of movies out there telling viewers to follow their dreams.

Overall, this movie started off a little slow and that worried me a bit but it ramped up fast. Once you get over the beginning of this movie this film will take you for a heck of a ride. It was extremely fun and impactful by the end of the movie. I have to give this movie an 8 out of 10. It had a good impact on me and I would definitely recommend others to watch it again. I may even check this movie out again.