'Onward' Is a Surprisingly Suberb Family Movie

Pixar is one the best animation studios – if not the best – today.  Every time they have a new film about to be released, there’s much anticipation for it.  However, in the case of their latest offering Onward, I didn’t quite have the same excitement for it that I’ve had with most of their (non-Cars) films in the past.  A huge reason for this is that the trailers were not exactly effective in making it look appealing.  For some reason, it seemed like more of a Dreamworks Animation film than a Pixar film.

So, it was a delightful surprise to find it much smarter, more poignant, and more enjoyable than I thought it would be.  I found it quite superb.  Maybe it was because those trailers made me lower my expectations than usual, and thus, I liked it more than I should.  Regardless, it definitely has that legit Pixar spark and high quality.

Onward is set in a world occupied by high fantasy races.  In the past, it used to look like a typical high fantasy world, where magic was held in high regard because of its helpfulness and usefulness.  However, at the onset of technology, magic became less attractive since technology was more convenient.  Over the years, this world has developed into a modern society that’s similar to ours, and magic and everything related to the magical are now forgotten and obsolete.

The story follows two elf brothers named Ian (Tom Holland) and Barley Lightfoot (Chris Pratt).  Ian, the younger one, is a socially awkward high schooler with self-confidence problems.  His carefree older brother Barley, meanwhile, is obsessed with RPGs and history (in their world’s case, their history is basically fantasy lore).  On Ian’s 16^th birthday, their mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) reveals to the brothers that their late father left them a gift, which he instructed to be given when both have turned sixteen.  This gift turned out to be a magical staff, a rare gem, and instructions for a “visitation spell”, which would temporarily resurrect their father for 24 hours.

Their father died when they were very young, and as a result, Barley only has a handful of memories of him, while Ian doesn’t have any (he was still either a baby or in his mother’s tummy when his father died).  Excited to reunite with their father, even for just a day, they perform the spell.  But before it can be fully finished, the rare gem breaks, leaving only the bottom half of his body summoned.  With only 24 hours to finish the spell and see their father, the Lightfoot brothers have to race against time as they embark on a quest to acquire another such jewel.  Of course, their incompletely resurrected father, who can only communicate and interact with them through his feet and legs, is brought along for the ride.

Onward is a fantastic movie about family, and a fantastic movie that everyone in the family can enjoy (that’s a mouthful to say, eh?).  It’s very entertaining from start to finish.  The animation is ravishing (as usual from Pixar), the voice acting is compelling, the pacing is terrific, and the script is solid.  The narrative has some clichéd parts, sure, but it also went to directions that I thought were fresh and unique.  It tugs the heartstrings with magnificent potency; the climax and the resolution are really clever and powerful.  It also delivers some fairly noteworthy insights about familial dynamics and not forgetting our heritage while living in this fast-paced, tech-savvy world.  Moreover, although the movie isn’t entirely hilarious, its humor is well-conceptualized and well-executed enough to deliver many chuckle-inducing moments.

Onward is my favorite movie of 2020 so far.  Though, to be fair, the year is still early, so there’s a good chance that will change soon.  Nevertheless, I love this film.  It’s not that great when compared to Pixar’s classics, but it’s still a great family film.  And honestly, it’s the most emotionally resonating Pixar film I’ve watched since Coco (Incredibles 2 and Toys Story 4 are the superior films overall, but they didn’t quite move me in the same way Onward did).