by Edward Baillargeon
Ever since they were founded in 1986, Pixar Animation Studios is one of the most beloved animation studios of all time. If there’s one franchise from Pixar that has been considered by many to not be on par one of their masterpieces like the Toy Story trilogy, Monsters, Inc., Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, WALL•E, Up, or Inside Out, it’s Cars. I thought the first film was pretty good and the second film is one of many films on my stupidly long list of guilty pleasures. So, when they first announced a third film, I was like “Eh. Okay, we’ll see how it turns out.” But then on November 21, 2016, Pixar released the first teaser trailer and it left everyone in shock and made people ask “Is it going to live up to the hype?” Well, I think it did and surpassed my expectations.
Blindsided by a new generation of blazing-fast racers, the legendary Lightning McQueen is suddenly pushed out of the sport he loves. To get back in the game, he will need the help of an eager young trainer named Cruz Ramirez with her own plan to win, inspiration from the late Doc Hudson, and a few unexpected turns. Proving that #95 isn’t through yet will test the heart of a champion on Piston Cup Racing’s biggest stage.
Cars 3 is easily the best film in the trilogy thanks to an unexpectedly poignant story going back to the routes (no pun intended) of the first film with the return of a character that I won’t spoil. With a studio like Pixar, you always expect them to shine in the visual department and this continues the trend with stunning animation with some fantastic looking backgrounds that really get you invested in the racing scenes that I will be talking about later. Owen Wilson knocks it out of the park as Lightning McQueen and Cristela Alonzo is hilarious as Cruz Ramirez with some of the funniest moments in the movie and gives some motivation that reminds me of Shia LaBeouf’s “Just Do It” speech. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXsQAXx_ao0) The racing scenes are the highlights of the movie and the infamous crash scene from the teaser trailer look spectacular in 3D.
Before the movie would start, they would play a heartwarming animated short called Lou, which is about a lost-and-found box and the unseen monster within trying to convince a bully to return the toys he stole. If you are a fan of Cars or Pixar, this is a must-see and is worth buying on Blu-ray and DVD. Cars 3 is one of the most surprising animated films of the year and gets a 9/10 with the Edward’s Seal of Approval.
