With Luca Pixar animation studios has taken a bit of a change in tone and style. Visually quite different from the studio's traditional approach and narratively lighter in tone, Luca is delightful and refreshing although someone overly simplistic while still being delightfully charming.
First I loved the look of the film. The film makers have been quoted as saying the look of the characters was based on Hayao Miyazaki's style and there is definitely an Aardman animation look to them too. This is a big shift for Pixar which has honed its own identifiable style for decades, but it is a welcome shake up. Luca doesn't attempt to try to look "real" instead creating a structurally animated looking world which breaks free from the need to be seen as realistic. I enjoy animation that embraces the freedom to create its own world. Its a very different approach from sister studio Disney's recent hyperrealistic Raya and the Last Dragon and it is just joyous to watch.
Pixar is the master of underwater animation from its ground breaking Nemo films and the way this film captures the transition from the sea worlds to the surface is gorgeous and powerful. But it isn't just that achievement. The film is also a loving tribute to Cinema Italiano and the works of the master Federico Fellini. The way the film uses light, tone, and its Italian coastline settings evokes the spirt of that genre of film that cinemaphiles will adore.
The film makers have stated the film's narrative is about that feeling of being different and how we all feel like outsiders at times. Luca truly grapples with this on a universal basis to be inclusive of the generalized feeling of not belonging and while that theme is important the film often feels so generalized that it never quite hits on a deeper level. The film kind of goes out of its way to ensure it isn't being a strict metaphor for anyone in particular and tries to be everything to everyone and that waters down (no pun intended) the power of the message somewhat. Still the story and its message are a beautiful story about being yourself and there is nothing wrong with that.
Pixar has in the past been able to take us through its stories to emotional levels of resonance that transcend the average film watching experience and I'm just not sure Luca ever quite breaks out. However what it lacks in depth (again no pun intended) it makes up for in pure visual artistry and charm. I love that the studio is attempting new things and not getting stuck in a rut. I love that they appear to be moving on from just making more Toy Story sequels, and I love that they can release something like this, a little delightful love letter to a number of different film styles that is just so damn joyous it will make you smile.
Luca
Starring: Jacob Tremblay, Jack Dylan Grazer, Emma Berman, Maya Rudolph, Jim Gaffigan, Sandy Martin, Saverio Raimondo, Marco Barricelli, Sacha Baron Cohen
Director: Enrico Casarosa
Writers: Jesse Andrews, Mike Jones
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