Friday, 1 July 2011

Cars 2

It was Pixar’s 20th Anniversary in 2006 when they made Cars. And while there may have been several other movies that Pixar could have chosen to make a sequel to, Cars 2 would have been as good a tribute as any other to Pixar’s existence. Yes Toy Story 3 could have been released a year later to commemorate the silver jubilee of Pixar (coz that’s what started it all) but then the magic of Cars is still up there. And Cars 2 doesn’t disappoint you one bit. Through the two hours that you would spend in the movie hall for this one, you would be reminded about the older characters which were so clearly sketched in the first edition of this superb franchise (buy it on DVD if you haven’t seen it yet) and you would also add a few more beautiful and memorable characters to a list that you would remember ever so fondly for the rest of your life. Kids, teenagers, tweenagers, or the older ones would all love Cars 2 in the same way.

One had to wait for a long time to see Cars 2 – something that I wasn’t too sure about after Cars 1 because they hadn’t really left it open ended enough to have one – but John Lasseter (who also gave us Cars) continues to spin the magic that he started off 5 years back. This time around the story revolves around a magic green fuel called Allinoil invented by the great Sir Miles Axelrod (Eddy Izzard) who is not only an adventurer but also one of the richest men – oops cars – in the world. To promote Allinoil, Sir Axelrod, organizes the race of all races – across 3 race tracks which would test the best race cars from all across the world. With race tracks that combine the best conditions for a variety of cars, Formula 1, Rally Cars and of course Indi Cars. Our hero Lightning decides to opt out but with the right instigation from the famous F1 Car Francesco Bernoulli (John Turturro) he decides to take the challenge on. However, there is something fishy going on which gets 2 characters into the fray – Finn McMissile (Michael Caine) and Holley Shiftwell (Emily Mortimer) – 2 secret agents who are onto something here. And when cars start blowing up they know that something is not right about this race.

Lasseter continues with what he is great at – character detailing. He leaves very little to imagination and covers as many traits of the characters as possible in the short time available. He continues to be aided by great casting – Caine is slick as McMissile and Mortimer is equally good as Shiftwell. The other voice overs continue to be the same as the first part with Larry the Cable Guy as Mator is outstanding!!! While the message in the previous edition was mainly about humility, this one is mainly about valuing friendships – a trait in Pixar animation that I truly admire. It is essential for movies to carry a message – even more so with animation cause we influence the younger ones even more. Although Cars 2 is for young and old alike. I give this an 8.5 on 10 yet again. Loved it completely!!!! This years academy awards line up is ready – Cars 2, Kung Fu Panda and Rango. No one else comes close.

Watch the trailer at http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1822465049/

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