And from Randy Newman’s by-the-numbers score to every single one of Mater’s tired quips, Cars 3 plays out like a rival studio’s lukewarm attempt to mimic Pixar’s magic. There isn’t one interesting new character, despite the effort from Hammer, Kerry Washington, Nathan Fillion, and Chris Cooper as Lightning’s cranky new trainer. But where at least Cars 2 consciously tried to go in a radically different direction, Cars 3 feels like a tame holding pattern, providing the race sequences and heartwarming homilies that were rampant in the first film - except without the same level of inspiration.
Yes, the dopey Tow Mater is, blessedly, back on the periphery where he belongs while Lightning (Owen Wilson) squares off with two new foes: a sleek race car named Jackson Storm (Armie Hammer) and, more imposingly, the growing realization that he’s not the king of the track anymore. Not exactly a high bar … and we’re not even convinced this film gets over it. The worst you can say is that, at this point, Pixar is fighting a losing battle trying to live up to its own glorious past.Įarly reviews of Cars 3 praised the latest installment in the Lightning McQueen saga for, essentially, not being Cars 2, the only Pixar film to receive a “rotten” rating on Rotten Tomatoes. Some of these movies work better than others, but all of them are trying to do something special - even if, in recent years, it seems like the studio’s magic has started to wane. We tried to keep context in mind - Toy Story had an ability to blow your mind in 1995 the way nothing could today - and also ambition: In the world of children’s entertainment, nothing has set Pixar apart more than its burning desire not to coast or mail it in. None of these movies is bad, but when you’ve made 27 films, one of them has to be No. Trying to rank all 27 Pixar feature films in order of quality is like trying to rank your children by how much you love them.
This previously published story has been updated to include Elemental. Photo-Illustration: Vulture Photos: Disney/Pixar, Moviestore/Shutterstock, Disney/Pixar/Kobal/Shutterstock
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