Onward Review

Onward was one of the last films I managed to catch before the lockdown set in.

The film is set in a modern world, with mythical creatures like elves, centaurs and unicorns. They once used magic in the past but have forgotten how to in the present day because of the development of modern technology and comforts.

The film follows two elf siblings, Ian and Barley, as they receive a letter from their deceased dad about a spell that can revive him for 24 hours. The spell fails and only brings back the father's legs. The film then follows the two of them as they go on a quest to find the mythical and magical McGuffin that will bring him back in his entirety before the day ends.

The film is alright but is not at the same level of greatness expected by Pixar. I've seen a lot of comparisons for this film to The Good Dinosaur. But I don't believe it is anywhere near as bad as that film. The attempts at humour in this film fall pretty flat and even feel forceful at times. They failed to get laughs from me. The character of the Manticore in the film is used for comedy (or attempts of it) but largely fails at it.

The two main characters do not feel original and feel like stock characters. Ian Lightfoot is the stereotypically unconfident and shy kid who doubts his every decision and Barley, the older brother, is immensely overconfident in everything he does. The relationship between them develops throughout the film in a very predictable manner. In comparison to some of the earlier buddy comedy dynamics like in Toy Story (Buzz and Woody), Monsters Inc. (Sully and Mike) and Finding Nemo (Marlon and Dory); it really falls short.

On the positive side of things, the animation and soundtrack of the film is pretty stellar and lives up to the standard set by the previous Pixar films. The climax is a great visual spectacle and offers a decent resolution for the characters and redeems the film a little bit. Most of the casting choices seem to work fine with the film, I don't believe they added much to the film but, it did not feel out of place.

Overall, I'd say the film is pretty mediocre for the most part, minus the end. It is definitely not the worst Pixar film, I would argue that spot belongs to the mess that is the Cars franchise.

I rate the film 2.5/5. It lies in the middle of the order along with Monsters University (which I just found out is by the same director).