Hey guys and welcome to a new movie review! Today is an exciting one as I will be talking about what was my most anticipated movie of the year 2020, Soul. Now I was excited for this film for a number of reasons main ones being that I am a massive Pixar fan and I anticipate anything they have to offer and this one in particular seemed to be an ambitious project for the studio due to it’s subject manner concerning souls and how they come to be. I also have been very impressed with Pete Doctor’s output at the studio, with a number of them being among my favorite films from them, and I was curious to see what him and co director Kemp Powers would come up with. Of course it’s theatrical release (well in some markets anyways) had to be cancelled due to the pandemic and so it ended up debuting on Disney+ which up-setted many (myself included) but at the very least it was able to come out and was well liked by those who saw it and of course ended up getting recognized by many awards circuits and even winning the Best Animated Feature Oscar. It also ended up being my personal favorite movie of last year as it really ended up being as good as I hoped and is another strong entry into Doctor’s filmography. Now let us go to the land of the Great Before to see how souls find their purpose and how this movie succeeds in exploring that!
In the bustling city of New York lives one Joe Gardner, a middle school band teacher who yearns to play music professionally as while he makes a living off of his job, it is isn’t quite the most satisfying for him. When he is given an offer for a full time teaching job, his mother Linda urges him to take it as she sees this as a great opportunity for him finally be settled for life but he has second thoughts once he decides to audition for an opening in a quartet led by jazz legend Dorothea Williams. She ends up being impressed by his abilities and hires him which greatly excites Joe so much so that he ends up accidently falling down a manhole due to distraction. When he stops falling he finds himself not in the sewers, but in the “Great Beyond” where souls go when they are ready to die. Not giving up on life and his one opportunity just yet Joe tries to escape but ends up traveling to the “Great Before”, which is where young souls are prepared for life on Earth with the help of counselors named Jerry and mentor souls. Mistaken for a mentor, Joe is assigned to the troublesome 22, a soul who is deeply cynical and refuses to go to Earth which naturally makes Joe’s plan to get back to Earth much harder than anticipated. So now Joe, with the reluctant help of 22, has to find a way to get back to his body before the gig which leads to the two going on a literal life changing journey.
Now of course the people at Pixar have shown that they are not afraid to take on themes related to loss and death as it is a common theme in some of their films like Up and Coco being notable examples. Some may assume Soul is something similar, but it actually ends up being different in a number of ways. In concept it does follow a similar type of plot line to other Pixar films where two very different individuals have to works together to go on a journey to accomplish a specific goal in a certain amount of time. Yet at the same time there turns out to be much more to it as it manages to subvert certain expectations in how things play out where our duo gets to learn more about each other and discover what life truly mean. I also liked how just when I thought there was a specific endpoint to wrap up the movie keeps on going with plenty more up it’s sleeve and it leads to some emotionally resonant pay offs that I thought really worked. It turns out to be less an exploration of death and more a celebration of life. It explores both the struggles one may have when living and how yes they are hard and can bring one down, but it also reminds us about the little pleasures and joys that make it worth living no matter what and in an interesting way where the films goes to ask certain question like what does it truly mean to live a meaningful life and what does it mean to find one’s purpose. These are the types of questions many of us find ourselves thinking now and then, and most of the time we may not know what to think, but this movie does a powerful job of reassuring people that no matter what one thinks their purpose shall be or if one thinks their living a life of mediocrity, our lives do matter, but it is up to us to take advantage of life to the fullest. I just love seeing a movie tackle on these themes in a satisfying matter and I actually think that the ambiguous ending works really well given what the movie is saying and it is a bit of a reflection of the unknown nature of the future and where life can take us. Aside from its thought provoking messaging though the movie is just a joy from beginning to end as Pete Doctor and co. really take advantage of the premise. I really like the way the Great Before is portrayed and the idea of souls figuring out who they are there, the idea of mentors guiding them, how there can be lost souls etc. as all of it is fascinating to watch and the movie does a nice job explaining them to the audience and it even serves a nice source of comedy at times like with the portrayal of the counselors and just the idea of stumbling upon another plane of living and how one would react to that. Speaking of the comedy this may be one of the funniest Pixar movies in my mind as I really laughed hard at the direction some of the jokes take as it pokes fun at certain aspects of humanity and I really enjoyed much of the banter between Joe and 22. Another aspect I really dug about the film was just how relaxing it felt. While there are stakes, everything moves at a leisurely pace where the film just lets us enjoy this world and get to know these characters and listen to them having fun and interesting conversations. I just find it neat how this movie manages to be so ambitious in it what it’s going for and the way it swing for the fences, but at the same time it’s a still a personal character driven story that moves at a relaxing pace and the fact that it works at all is a credit to the writers.
As cliched as it is to say this, it still remains true as the animators at Pixar show off their talents once more with this film and in some ways Soul is a one of their most visually arresting films in my eyes. Since the movie spends time in two very different locations there is an appropriate contrast between New York City and the Great Before and both are stunning in different ways. With New York it’s probably one of the most lived in portrayals of the city I’ve seen in animation as it looks stunningly realistic with many little details regarding the textures of the environment and the lighting as well is also very impressive in certain scenes. The designs of the humans are also impressive for similar reasons as they are they have realistic features but also have enough exaggerated aspects to prevent them from being photo realistic. The Great Before and the Great Beyond on the other hand are the complete opposite. There are some really stylistic choices here that make this world feel truly something otherworldly and it definitely feels like Pixar trying new things, trying different styles out, which is most apparent in the brief scene where Joe falls from the Great Beyond to the Great Before. The titular soul world itself is also something to behold as it has this ethereal feel to it that makes it feel like a whole new plane of existence and the use of blue and white for the art direction works effectively at portraying that. The designs also stand out, specifically those of the counselors as they look like they came straight out of an abstract painting and fit the spiritual nature of the location (they almost feel like they came out of the abstract thought scene from Inside Out) and the souls themselves look simple as they are just floating blue beings, but that makes sense given that they are only souls. Also adding to the atmosphere is the score which was done by Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross who are newcomers when it comes to composing for the studio and they just knock it out of the park as this is among my favorite soundtracks in any Pixar movie (appropriate given the role music, specifically jazz) plays in Joe’s motivation. It can be haunting and mysterious at some points and poignant and uplifting at others and it’s used to great effect in certain sequences with the stand outs being when Joe is in the “Zone” and the epiphany scene with the latter also uses visuals impressively to convey Joe’s feelings and thoughts. Adding in Doctor’s strong direction for the film which holds every thing together and you’ve get one technical marvel with this one.
When it comes to the characters of, the film understandably chooses to focus on Joe and 22 and both are interesting individuals with compelling arcs that are relatable in different and not so different ways. Joe is someone who yearns for greatness in his life and wants to pursue his musical passion but is frustrated by what he thinks is a mundane experience. There is definitely aspects about him a relatable protagonist, one who is flawed and makes some rash decision at times in order to get his chance at what he thinks is a true purpose in life. I feel like many have gone through an existential dilemma like this at least once in their lives and I think Joe’s arc captures that really well as we see his frustrations with how his life is going and one can understand what he is going through. 22 on the other hand doesn’t even want to give life on Earth a chance and is always avoiding it no matter how many mentors, from Abraham Lincoln to Mother Teresa she has had to annoy (Side note: I do like how that really funny gag ends up taking a more somber turn when the climax comes). While some may find her annoying, I personally found her to also be relatable as well as her cynical view of life stems from certain anxieties she has regarding how she would fair in the world and she proves to be much more than just a source of comedic relief, even though she does provide a number of great laughs both through her cynicism and when (spoilers) she eventually gets to exploring Earth in Joe’s body. The both come to learn a lot about life through each other and it is their relationship that leads them to make crucial life changing choices. Their relationship really is the heart and soul of this film and I found really liked where both of their arcs took them as they felt like natural conclusions to their story here. Also want to give credit to Jamie Foxx who gives one of my personal favorite performances from him as Joe, succeeding in giving him many layers as he nails when he is frustrated, energetic or emotional, and adding a lot of nuance to what’s on the page. Tina Fey also does a nice job as 22, as she does succeed with this kind of humor, although I can understand why many would be off putted by this casting choice given what happens in the second act (it didn’t bother me too much as I thought the writing was so strong, but I can see why people wouldn’t respond well to it). The rest of the characters don’t have a ton of screen time, yet weirdly enough are able to stand out and add a lot to the character’s arcs. Two of the more important ones are Joe’s mother, Libba (Phylicia Rashad), who loves her son but is worried that him pursuing his dreams will go nowhere and wants him to live a comfortable life, and Moonwind (a delightful Graham Norton) a spiritual sign twirler who spends a lot of time in the zone and ends up aiding Joe and 22 on their journey. Both are interesting in very different ways with the former involved in one of the more compelling conflicts (which leads to a great scene involving Joe finally letting everything out in an unusual manner) and the latter makes for a fun presence. The other stand outs for me were the counselors all named Jerry (voiced by many including Alice Braga, Richard Ayoade, Wes Studi, etc.) except for Terry (Rachel House) who is the one trying to track Joe and 22 down and they are simply delightful and are fun guides to this world. Terry in particular is fun as she is so needlessly stricter than the others and it is amusing seeing them interact with her and how they seem to not pay attention to her ranting, but try to be friendly with her anyway. Other smaller yet memorable individuals include Curley (Questlove), a former student of Joe’s, Dez (Donnell Rawlings), an extremely nice cool barber who knows his craft, famous jazz legend Dorthea Williams (Angela Bassett) who takes jazz very seriously, and Paul (Daveed Diggs) a frenemy of Joe who is involved in one of the funniest (and darkest) jokes in film. Each of them serve their roles very well and are able to be more than just devices to move the plot forward, and they end up playing important roles in shaping our two leads.
All in all I really love Soul and think it is yet another imaginative feature from the mind of Pete Doctor. It tackles fascinating subject matter in an ambitious manner very well, it has plenty of powerful scenes of genuine emotion, the pacing is nice as I felt sucked into the story, it’s one of the studio’s funniest films, the animation is astounding and succeeds in transporting the audience to two different worlds, Joe and 22 have relatable and compelling arcs, and the other characters stand out in their own ways. This might be among my personal favorites from the studio as I was very impressed with what it was able to accomplish and it continues the studio’s commitment to diversifying their films by getting diverse talent on board and delving into different types of movies with unique animation styles. It’s also a perfect film in this moment in time, where things can get rough, as it is good reminder of just what life is all about and why it is worth living till the end.
Rating: A+
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