First off, I’m not one to post spoilers… so you can read without worrying about that sort of thing happening here. I’m also not going to rehash the plotline since I am sure that you can find that on IMDB or other sources rather easily.
What I wanted to say about this film is simply this…
WOW! And not just any sort of WOW! This is a WOW for which Disney can be proud.
Let’s face it, There are people that will love Disney films no matter what the subject matter. And to some extent, I will be willing to see many Disney films in the theater over many other films playing at the same time. However, that does not mean I am going to walk out of there (with a free popcorn and soda refill, I might add) and exclaim how good a movie is just because it starts off with fireworks over a castle. I mean, Walt Disney Animation pushed out some real stinkers for a while. Admittedly, some are probably a bit underrated as well. Once WDAS started putting out some quality such as in The Princess and the Frog and Tangled things started to trend upward. And for the two movies previous to BH6, being Wreck it Ralph and Frozen, the bar kept rising.
Keep in mind, this is not just because the animation got better (and it did) and not because the soundtracks kept getting better (and they did) and it was not just because the storylines were more creative (and they are.) Those single items were just a portion of the formula that makes the WDAS offerings better than their predecessors over the past two decades. But combine those components and the sum is greater than the parts.
So back to BH6. I got to see it this morning and I tired to not be biased by those that saw it earlier. Sure, i got the “You GOT to see it – it was AWESOME” sort of comments. I have been fooled by this before.
In this case… I was not fooled at all.
First off, I will tell you that the short feature before the movie (Feast) was probably one of the most touching animated shorts that I have seen in a long time. It was very well animated and is not something to miss. Go to the rest room when the trailers start if you have to, but don’t miss the short.
For the feature film, I found myself feeling a lot of different emotions all throughout the film. There were parts that were really funny. It has a lot of action. Some sadness. Even a brief moment that was rather intense. (Not intense enough where I would caution against younger kids seeing it.) I mean, I love a funny animated film, but this one really brought you into the feelings of the characters, which I think was a pretty strong point for the film. The plot line was simply creative that gave something of a blend between The Incredibles and Meet the Robinsons, with a little bit of The Avengers mixed in. The latter should be of no surprise due to the comic book roots of the film. At the same time, don’t read my comparisons as it was a rip off of old plot lines. At least I did not think so. In fact, I think there were very few predictable points within the film.
I thought the soundtrack was very good as well. The music was well done and will probably be added to my collection of movie soundtracks. Heck, even “Immortals” by Fall Out Boy was a perfect addition to the film. The only criticism I had regarding the sound in general had nothing to do with the film but the theater. The surround tracks need to be better balanced out to help engulf the guest… and not just allow the random sound effect to come through. This really makes me want to see it again in IMAX and/or a theater that uses Dolby Atmos for a comparison. All I know is that most movies sound better in a 7.1 mix on a BluRay in my home theater than most movie houses. Sorry to rant a bit on that, but I believe the soundtrack is just as important as the movie itself.
The credits are worth waiting through to see an additional scene at the end. I saw others posting spoilers.. and I wont do that. However, it is a scene that is worth the wait. If you enjoyed the film up to that point, you will see what I mean when you see it. I will tell you this… there is one part of the credits that I read that made me laugh quite hard. There was a credit for “Caffination.” I can only assume this was a shout out to those whom made many a late night possible.
If this upward trend continues for WDAS, I won’t question if I want to shell out the cash for a visit to my local theater. And in this day and age of rising costs, that says a lot.
Go see Big Hero 6. Good fun for all.
Have a great one!
-C
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Common Sense Disney! 