Summary
A film about the film that inspired the toys sold in another film. This straightforward animated caper looks gorgeous as it transports us back and forth through time.
It has not gone unnoticed that Disney-Pixar have been releasing some of their most original work in years under adverse conditions. From Onward through Soul and Turning Red, the animation powerhouse has managed a four-film streak of original concepts that have debuted on, or at least been fast-tracked to, Disney’s streaming service. As Pixar returns to cinemas, they only do so with the more familiar branding of the Toy Story universe.
Well, sort of. LIGHTYEAR is not so much a solo Buzz Lightyear film as it is the origin story of the character that inspired the toy line. An opening title card tells that in 1995, a boy named Andy received a Buzz Lightyear toy based on his favourite movie. This purports to be that movie. So, what we have is an in-universe feature, one that follows Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Chris Evans) as he and his crew become stranded on a distant planet thanks to his own hubris.
While trialling an experimental power source to get them all home, he inadvertently gets flung four years into the future. After repeated flights, a dejected Buzz finds that not only have the survivors built a fully-fledged civilisation, but they are fighting Zurg’s (James Brolin) robot invaders. Together with Izzy Hawthorne (Keke Palmer), the granddaughter of Buzz’s best friend and commanding officer, he tries to put a past wrong right.
Director Angus MacLane (Toy Story of Terror, Finding Dory) and co-writer Jason Headley’s film works best when it plays this concept straight. Between the call-back lines and winking to the camera, which are prolific in the first act, there’s a throwback action film that’s light on subtlety but big on thrills. Even before the title drop, there’s a massive set-piece action sequence that seems to set the tone for the rest of the film. At least until it all shifts radically.
With the introduction of Izzy comes companions Mo Morrison (Taika Waititi), a clumsy cadet, and ex-con Darby Steel (Dale Soules), the film becomes a tale of a ragtag group written as comic relief. It’s as if Buzz not only crash lands in the future but in another film entirely, as MacLane and Headley lose faith in their own premise (or Disney wasn’t quite ready for a wholly dramatic feature yet). That said, robotic cat Sox (voiced by Peter Sohn) — a utilitarian twist on Up‘s Dug — is a source of unrelenting joy.
On a technical level, there’s nothing to quibble about. Every Pixar production ups the ante on animation, and this time the visuals are leaps and bounds (lightyears even) ahead of anything else out there. While maintaining some of the familiar character designs, the influence of ILM gives us realistic spaceship designs and effects to evoke the films of the 80s and 90s. Of course, no film in 1995 looked this good.
A fun albeit straightforward animated caper, LIGHTYEAR is the kind of meta-commentary one gets when all the cinematic influences exist in a closed-loop lifecycle. Pop doesn’t just eat itself here but continues to create whole meals out of its own brands. There is no apparent irony, after all, that this is literally meant to be a major release that inspired toy sales. Just as they did with live-action remakes of their own animation, Disney have opened the door to more in-universe origins to infinity (and beyond). Surely, Woody’s Roundup: The Motion Picture can’t be far behind?
2022 | USA | DIRECTOR: Angus MacLane | WRITERS: Jason Headley | CAST: Chris Evans, Keke Palmer, Peter Sohn, James Brolin, Taika Waititi, Dale Soules | DISTRIBUTOR: Disney | RUNNING TIME: 110 minutes | RELEASE DATE: 16 June 2022 (AUS), 17 June 2022 (US)
