Like Onward, the Pixar film that was released in 2020 prior to it, Soul also has death as a major
theme. It follows Joe Gardner (Jamie
Foxx), a music teacher who is passionate about jazz and has his sights on
becoming a professional jazz pianist.
Soon after landing his dream gig, he accidentally falls down a manhole
and dies. Refusing to pass over to the
“Great Beyond” (i.e. the afterlife) when his big break is on hand, he goes the
opposite direction, and eventually finds himself in the “Great Before” – the
spiritual realm where unborn souls are prepared before they start life on Earth. There, he sees an opportunity to gain passage
back to Earth by passing off as a mentor to 22 (Tina Fey), a cynical, adamant unborn
soul who doesn’t want to start a life on Earth.
What’s great about Pixar films is
that they are made for children but adults can enjoy and appreciate them as
well. However, Soul feels like the opposite.
It feels like it was made for adults but children can enjoy and
appreciate it as well. Much of its
comedy, narrative, and themes are seemingly geared toward more developed tastes
as they require a decent extent of awareness about real-world stuff.
To be honest, I didn’t find the plot
immediately compelling. The premise or
execution probably didn’t appeal to me at first. Eventually, I did get invested on it, but
it wasn’t until around that part where there’s an excellent joke about the New
York Knicks before I could tell that it had finally won me over. In the end, Soul proved to be an enjoyable, imaginative, touching, and thought-provoking
animated film – in other words, a proper Pixar production.
However, for a movie about jazz, the
musical aspect isn’t impressive. Going in,
I expected its music and musical performances to be as appealing and memorable
as those in other jazz-centered IPs like Kids on the Slope and Whiplash. However, even though I liked the jazz scenes,
I wasn’t blown away. But come to think
of it, I guess jazz isn’t necessarily the centerpiece of this movie. It’s actually just an incidental element of
the story. Passion and purpose are the
movie’s actual subject matters; not jazz or music. Still, I would have had a higher opinion of Soul if the music was stronger.
Like other Pixar films, Soul tackles themes that are relevant to
the human experience. However, I don’t
agree with many aspects of its messaging, especially with regards to its employment
of bad theology and New Age nonsense.
Now, I understand that these are intended to be treated as fictional. But they rubbed me the wrong way nonetheless,
and I believe caution is in order.
However, when the negative spiritual
content is sieved out, Soul does have something worthwhile to say. Although obviously not intended, the movie contains
lessons and metaphors that can be harmonious with the Christian worldview,
which I adhere to. It celebrates the
preciousness of life, and how it must not be wasted and how it is beautiful
despite its ups and downs – arguing somewhat that it is the “up and down”
nature of life that makes it interesting, and that leading a happy, rewarding
life does not depend on getting the dream life that you’ve wanted. More notably, while tackling the concepts of
purpose and meaning, and how these tie closely to life, Soul refreshingly contradicts the fallacious “follow your heart”
philosophy that is usually promulgated by children’s movies (especially those made
by Disney). It asserts instead that
purpose is not found within us or in our passions, but rather from an outside,
transcendental source (which, in my Christian worldview, is God). Lastly, Soul
warns about the danger of becoming obsessed with our passions. They very much can morph into idols, which will
surely disconnect us from life, and bring us to despair. In addition, the fulfillment of our passions won’t
necessarily result to true satisfaction (again, in the Christian worldview,
true satisfaction is found in God alone).
As of writing, I’m still not sure
which between Onward and Soul do I think is the better 2020 Pixar
film. Onward was able to tug at my heartstrings more effectively, while I
found Soul to be more thoughtful. Regardless, I enjoyed Soul around the same extent as Onward,
and both are among my favorite movies of 2020.
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