While spending years attempting to return home, marooned Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear encounters an army of ruthless robots commanded by Zurg, who are attempting to steal his fuel source.
“To infinity and beyond!” That beloved catchphrase is repeated ad nauseam in the latest Disney/Pixar “Toy Story” spin-off, “Lightyear.” That sentiment once applied to Pixar’s own stellar output, which promised a bright future of deeply felt, original, visually stunning content. They recently started to falter, wedging closer to their big studio competitors’ “run-of-the-mill” computer animation. The focus, which used to be on creating art, seems to have shifted to feeding the audience what it wants.
There are exceptions: the recent “Soul” is a gorgeous, trippy amalgamation of jazz and existential rumination. “Onward,” however, is a misguided mess; “Luca” comes off like “The Little Mermaid” -lite; and “Turning Red” is a preachy, unabashed tearjerker. While not terrible, these films lack the magic spark that made the pre-Disney-merger Pixar so unique and special. File “Lightyear” — Angus MacLane’s latest addition to the “Toy Story” canon — under the “middling Pixar” category.
Due to a mistake he made, Buzz and his large crew get stranded on an inhospitable planet. Determined to get his folks back home, our hero attempts to break the light-speed barrier. Everyone around him ages with each consecutive attempt, but he remains young. After a sappy “Up” style intro, the real plot kicks in: an army of alien robots descends upon the planet, determined to thwart Buzz’s plans.
Perhaps I am being a bit too harsh. “Lightyear” is a nifty, simple sci-fi adventure bound to inspire kids to learn more about space travel and maybe even physics. It comes as no surprise that the animation is top-notch, which is usually the case with Pixar. The planet, with its predatory vegetation and bugs, is beautifully rendered in jaw-dropping detail. Buzz’s light-speed flights are vivid and, at times, exhilarating.
But the concept itself doesn’t fully deliver. Within the “Toy Story” universe, “Lightyear” the Movie was released in 1995 (when the original “Toy Story” premiered in reality). Clever, sure, but it also requires a significant suspension of disbelief. You’re watching an animated actor playing the inspiration for a sentient toy. You’ll either go with the film-within-a-film premise, or you won’t.
It also leads to other issues. The very thing that made Buzz Lightyear so endearing — his adamant belief that he is a real Space Ranger — is gone. Buzz is still misplaced, albeit on a different planet, but here he’s a human being with a few goofy tendencies. That said, Chris Evans does a fine enough job doing a variation of Tim Allen’s intonations — or, if you want to get technical, a variation of what a Tim Allen impersonation of the real thing would be (argh, this is getting too convoluted).
“Lightyear” features a queer Black female protagonist, multiple uses of contemporary slang, and relevant themes, among a slew of commendably progressive aspects – none of which would fly in 1995. Another thing that has progressed significantly since the mid-1990s is computer animation. Are the choppy characters from the original “Toy Story” watching these mind-blowing visuals?
One may ask, “But how would you avoid those anachronisms? Exclude diversity, make it hand-drawn?” I would reply that I’m not a filmmaker; I’m a film critic, and these things bugged me. Perhaps they won’t bother a child. Children most likely don’t remember the 30-year-old original anyway, which makes the entire meta nature of this thing appealing primarily to adults. Who will most likely ponder the same questions I am. (Argh, this is getting too convoluted).
As progressive as the film is, the plot is basic at best. The explanation of time dilation — the faster you travel, the more time passes by — is delivered to an incredulous Buzz. I get that it needs to be explained/taught to the young ’uns in the audience, but I still couldn’t help wondering, “Wouldn’t Buzz the Space Ranger know all this already?” Also, the whole “loved ones aging while hero travels through space” thing, delivered as if it were groundbreaking, will be familiar to anyone who’s read a science fiction story.
These days, Disney•Pixar seems to be primarily regurgitating, pandering, and milking these tear ducts, as opposed to delivering the wisdom and gentle, heart-shattering poignancy of “Wall-E,” “Up,” or, yes, the “Toy Story” movies. “To infinity and beyond”? It’s more like, “To the next cash cow, then let’s see how it performs.”
In Theaters Friday, June 17th
