“Soul” is Disney Pixar’s Return to Form

By Sam Cooperman ‘22

    It took a decade, but 2020’s “Soul” shows the world that the Pixar we know and love is back. 
The original 11 Pixar films (from “Toy Story” in 1995 to “Toy Story 3” in 2010) all received critical acclaim and were loved by audiences. However, since 2011’s “Cars 2,” Pixar has been struggling to get back to its roots. Most of Pixar’s original 11 are considered movies for adults that kids can follow which is something I recently discovered while rewatching most of the originals over winter break.

I hadn’t seen “The Incredibles” in years and it felt like a completely different movie. I never would have understood many of the jokes and character moments as a child but this style of filmmaking has been absent from almost every single one of Pixar’s productions since the dreaded Cars 2. While 2015’s “Inside Out” and 2017’s “Coco” were standouts during Pixar’s dark period, they never reached the same adult heights as the older films.
Flash forward to the very end of 2020 and “Soul” is released on Disney+ to seemingly very little fanfare. It sits with very high reviews from multiple outlets, but once the first day or two after release passed, the internet had seemingly moved on. This is incredibly upsetting as “Soul” serves as Pixar’s return to greatness. 
“Soul” is directed by Pete Docter, one of Pixar’s original core four, known most notably for “Up” (2009) and “Monsters Inc.” (2001). Docter also served as a writer and producer on many of Pixar’s original 11 and “Inside Out,” one of Pixar’s best films during the 2010s.
While I don’t plan on spoiling “Soul,” I will go over some themes and minor plot elements. Arguably the best and worst part about “Soul” was its trailers. The idea of an aspiring African American jazz musician dying just after getting his big break seems incredibly intriguing, especially when combined with Pixar’s incredible animation, art style and the voice talents of Jamie Foxx as Joe Gardner and Tina Fey as 22. The trailers show that Gardner must travel through the afterlife and return his soul to his body in time for his first big performance.
However, just twenty minutes into the movie, viewers are thrown a massive curveball in terms of the overall plot that makes the movie much more interesting than it initially seems. I loved the surprise, but I think more people would have seen it if the real plot was the one marketed because it is much more exciting and unique.
One of the main themes of “Soul” is exploring an individual’s purpose in life. This theme is handled masterfully with incredibly hard-hitting dialogue, and having the two main characters serve as foils. Gardner is very eager to get back to his body and enjoy his life, but the unborn soul 22 wants nothing more than to skip past earth and move on to the afterlife. These moments of fundamental disagreement between characters is what brings “Soul” into the “adult movie that kids can follow” genre. These themes are simply too weighty and existential for younger viewers to process and understand.
“Soul” also is Pixar’s most emotional movie since its early days. This is incredibly subjective, but from what I’ve heard, many people either teared up or cried at some point during the movie (myself included). The most likely reason “Soul” hits “right in the feels” is because of Gardner’s incredibly relatable struggle. Gardner knows right from the start of the movie his spark is to play the piano. All he wants out of life is to be a successful jazz musician like his idols and make his mother proud.
Everyone in the real world has their spark. No matter what it is, there is something everyone wants to do so badly that it is hard to put into words. It might not be something as simple as playing the piano, but it’s there. Watching Gardner fight so hard to keep his spark and feel that his life has meaning is something anyone can relate to.
The best part about watching Gardner fight for his spark is how in-depth Pixar goes. They could have taken the easy route and ensured the idea that Gardner’s spark is the one thing that gives his life meaning, something he is convinced for almost the entirety of the film. Instead, Docter and the rest of the crew slowly and thoughtfully explore what it means for life to have purpose. This is what truly elevates the film into the adult category.
The animation is hard to discuss without major spoilers so, to put it briefly, it is simply spectacular. The dust particles floating in a classroom, the glow and harsh contrast of the pathway to the great beyond and the lighting of an underground jazz club are easily some of if not the best and most realistic looking sets in any animated film. I can almost guarantee it will be years until we see any animation more realistic than this outside of live actors flying around with green screens.
While “Soul” never reaches the same heights as “Ratatouille, “Pixar’s magnum opus, it certainly comes close. Whether you love it for the awe-inspiring animation, universally relatable protagonist or existential themes, “Soul” represents Pixar’s return to form and cements Docter and the rest of the Pixar team among the greatest living filmmakers.