Directed By Pete Docter and Kemp Powers

Starring – Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton

The Plot – Joe (Foxx) is a middle-school band teacher whose life hasn’t quite gone the way he expected. His true passion is jazz, and he’s good at playing it. But when he travels to another realm to help someone find their passion, he soon discovers what it means to have soul.

Rated PG for thematic elements and some adult language

Disney and Pixar’s Soul | Official Trailer | Disney+ – YouTube

POSITIVES

– Breathtaking animation. This is another vibrantly fantastical effort from Pixar that not only immerses in the colors and contexts of the movie’s theme, but also captivates us with the level of detail that seamlessly bridges the gap between animation and reality accordingly. In this regard, I was blown away by the elegance in lighting, which varied in influence between proximities and character movements, as well as the emotional variation in facial resonation between each character, which made identity feel as distinct as ever before. The shaping of the character designs, specifically the bodies and facial structures feel so evidently different from any other film in the extended universe, and is illustrated in a way that really makes the animation spring to life with an echoing consistency when they come into contact with a physical conflict. It’s hard to imagine that this company will eventually produce such radiant imagery that will make “Soul” feel amateur by comparison, but Pixar is a company that continues to push the envelope for atmospheric authenticity, all the while maintaining that air of color-coded intoxication that simultaneously brings the imaginations of our childhoods to life, regardless of age of the audience invested in it.

– Hefty material. Once again, Pixar isn’t afraid to humble their characters with a variety of life themes that pay respect to the perception of child audiences. For “Soul”, it’s obviously the construct of death, and the unpredictable nature of such, but beyond that there are full-blown realizations of the afterlife, reincarnation, and purpose that preserve an element of fragility to these characters that are rarely seen and explored in American animated properties. Sometimes it can be a bit too literal with everything that has been rumored beyond the gates of consciousness, but credit to screenwriters Docter, Mike Jones, and Kemp Powers for fully fleshing out a speculative world far beyond our own, complete with rules and concepts that feel believable without alienating anyone for their particular beliefs. It gives the movie’s title a double meaning that is every bit thought-provoking as it is bittersweet to the consequential pulse of characters we very much invest in, and proves that “Soul” has may creative layers that it continuously sheds on its way to being a film that is, above anything else, an important one.

– Magic in the music. I was blown away to find out that David Fincher’s two right hand men, Trent Reznor and Atticus Finch, scored “Soul’s” smooth sailing jazz compositions, complete with a consistency for audibility that musically narrates every step of our story along the way. Aside from their numbers feeling like strong representations of Jazz’s many instrumental encompassing, it’s very much a consistency to score that is realized in the beat of the characters alluding us to it being the African American’s contribution to American culture, which in turn gives it historical significance for a period in time far from this movie’s timely setting. As to where Reznor and Finch attained a bombastically big band orchestral score for their work in “Mank”, which expanded their musical identity far beyond anything they’ve accomplished prior, “Soul” too challenges them creatively in reinventing their masterful collaborations, and smoothly intoxicates us every step of the way.

– Unpredictable. Apparently, the production team behind this movie’s marketing understands that trailers aren’t meant to answer every question, and reveal every circumstance. I say that because there was an abundance of turns in the direction that I honestly wasn’t expecting, thus forcing this screenplay to shapeshift within itself every thirty minutes or so. Where it heads in the second act was initially a bit of a concern to me with an out of body experience of sorts, but my worries were quickly dismissed with a sweet sentimentality that earned some of the best moments of the film for me, and fleshed the characters out far better than the exposition dumps within the afterlife simply ever could. By the third act, we are treated to a very consequential conflict between our two main characters that not only tests their blossoming friendship, but surprisingly attains a level of stakes to characters that are already deceased that most films still have difficulty mastering.

– The humor element. While I would classify most of “Soul” as a heartfelt drama, there are occasional ingredients of carefully placed comedy that are every bit effective as they are surprisingly wielded. I say this in regard to it using the Seth Macfarlane device in animated comedies like “Family Guy” or “American Dad”, in that the movie occasionally stops to flash back to a moment that elaborates on the punchline from character conversations in the current. The transitions themselves are smoothly edited without feeling like a nagging cliche on the story’s pacing, but what’s especially rewarding is the level of adult material that attains clarity without the movie compromising its moral fiber with bodily humor or physicality gags that would feel out of place here. The comedy does offer welcomed moments of relief that keeps this from feeling like a continuous gut punch to audience emotions, all the while guiding us through the spontaneity of the spirit world that sacrifices many things, but never the sense of humor that wonderfully define these characters.

– Energetic vocalizations. Foxx and Fey attain a level of immersive disguise with their audible ranges, which remove familiarity in their tones, but also appraises importance to the way they approach each character. For Foxx, it’s the raspy registry of Joe that occasionally makes him feel years older than he actually is, complete with a stern uncertainty to the events changing things before his eyes that welcomes Foxx to approach fear in the way he rarely does in other films while playing a character who is continuously in control. For Fey, her delve requires a bit more straining of her vocal capacity, emoting a child range of sorts as ’22’ that feels one range below her typical vocal classification. The two share a gentle chemistry as a student/mentor relationship that plays in ways that occasionally test those labels, and gives each a wide range in opportunity that showcases some of the best work from both in over a decade.

– Tonal familiarity. While the comedy and drama are so competently balanced among the many shifts and turns in life’s plan seen throughout the film, there’s an underlying poignancy to “Soul” sure to dredge up the same tears that made “Coco” and “Inside Out” such a personal experience for many audiences. Even though I never fully embraced the emotional resonance to the level that those movies provided me, there is still one scene in particular during the third act that tightened my jaw, and provided one of the more memorable gut-punches in Pixar’s distinctly memorable filmography. It proves that there’s an emotional connection to these films that not only cements your investment to the characters, but also the relatability to the struggle within a fantastical world that resonates simultaneously in the one we live in. Humanity above all else.

– Meaningful message. Without spoiling a majority of where this story heads, and what aspects of self-awareness it crosses in reaching such, it is very much a film that I interpreted as about the frailty of life, and how every day as such is a blessing along the way. In fact, the entirety of the film revels in this level of attained urgency that is anything but present in the progression of the screenplay, instead offering a transferring wisdom to those watching beyond for how their lives may have paralleled Joe’s, and what advice it can take from the movie’s examples. It’s intentionally heavy-handed, especially in the final ten minutes, where Joe comes full circle with many epiphanies that distort reality, and cement an ideal that spark or inspiration doesn’t come from a career or hobby, but rather the people and experiences in life that give meaning to the music that life continuously constructs. It’s easy enough for youthful audiences to grasp, yet layered enough in ambiguity for adults to diversely debate, giving further elaboration to a theme so universally shared.

NEGATIVES

– Plot holes and conveniences. Even with an entire production that was mostly satisfying and entirely engaging, I still can’t escape a few nagging instances that soiled the integrity of the rules and logics established within this created world. The first is with the concept of a spark, and what that is loosely defined as for a character. During the early scenes of the second act, 22’s eyes light up when she mentions many things that she would be interested in, only to have them shot down by Joe because they are examples of bad things. The problem with this concept is good or bad they are still sparks that interest her, and should therefore give her what she seeks. Because there are bad people in the world, they would obviously have ugly sparks, but would that take away from the goal of seeking such? In addition to this, I appreciate the film’s attention to detail with a soul invading a new body, and what challenges that would create. The problem, however, comes from a soul who has never lived before, and suddenly knows how to walk without problem. Walking stems from muscle memory, and if you’ve never had it, you can never understand it. So it’s a bit of a surprise to see her walking with such ease. Finally, there’s a scene where a cat is trimming the hair of a human (You read that right), and it’s so obviously constructed to give the story a reason to invade a barber shop for a plot device. Occasional sloppiness between a script that is almost entirely brilliant.

– Exposition dumps. I mentioned this previously when I was discussing the expansion of the script, and what it does beneficially for the film. This is unfortunately the other side of that, during the afterlife, which is far too long-winded and dialogue-driven to attain the level of interest that everything on Earth preserved. It’s obvious that rules to this world have to be explained, but the obviousness becomes a problem to the direction, which all but points to those moments that you know will inevitably materialize by film’s end. The film knows this too, that’s why it almost entirely gives up on this aspect midway through the film, and only cuts back during those moments it absolutely has to in order to move the conflict along. For my money, it could’ve been worked into the progression a little smoother along the long-term storytelling. Unloading it all within twenty minutes only highlights its desperation in a 90 minute film.

My Grade: 8/10 or B+