‘Lightyear’ Review: Striking And Charming Pixar Story Weighed Down By Its Plot. But Sox The Cat Has My Heart!
My first thought after watching Disney Pixar’s Lightyear, right after the credits rolled, was— Oh wait, no, the first thought actually was, “Are there really three post-credit scenes? Like, can someone Google and check?” And, the second thought was, if this is the movie that little Andy saw in 1996 and decided to get the Buzz Lightyear toy, did he even fully grasp how meta this film was? Did he legit sit through its entire runtime, which though not that long at 105 minutes, felt tedious in places because of too much dialogue and a neverending relay-race of failures for Buzz? There were children—oh boy, were there children—in my show, and most of them only paid attention when Sox (voiced by Peter Sohn), the cat bot, was talking. And, if I were to confess, it was my favourite thing about the movie too, other than the voice-casting of Chris Evans as Buzz, and all the stunning visual and story parallels to some popular aviation and space opera films. And anytime they’re saying “To Infinity And Beyond”.
Lightyear is directed by Angus McLane, who has also written the screenplay with Jason Headley, for the story which is written by them both and Matthew Aldrich. The editing is by Anthony J. Greenberg and the music by Michael Giacchino.
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What’s Lightyear About?
Buzz Lightyear is a Galactic Ranger in the Star Command, and under the leadership of Commander Alisha Hawthorne, lands on the planet of Tikana Prime to explore it. However, a misfortune causes Buzz to crash their spaceship and they’re stuck in this semi-inhabitable planet that is not without its hostilities. Gradually, Hawthorne and the rest of the crew manage to make this new planet their home, while Buzz relentlessly tests new hyperspace fuel formulas in the hope to take everyone back home one day. It takes a lot of resilience from him to keep going despite failures, and mainly, it takes a lot of time.
But when he is finally able to crack the formula, with help from his robotic feline companion, Sox, the command changes, and he is forbidden to fly again. He manages to anyway and completes his test mission, but when he returns, things are not the same on Tikana Prime. With a rag-tag team of novices and the amazing cat-bot Sox, Buzz must fight for his one chance to return home. But the fight isn’t easy, because when it is a Disney Pixar movie, a hero must often defeat the enemy inside before they can tackle the trouble outside.
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Lightyear is funny, emotional and downright adorable. And in true Pixar style, kaafi meta
The first few minutes of Lightyear are hilarious and set a good tone for the film. It’s instantly evident that this Buzz isn’t the Buzz we know from Toy Story (voiced by Tim Allen). Not yet. This one is a more serious, no-nonsense space ranger, who just wants to do his duty. And that leaves him no space for any emotion, but plenty of unintentional humour can be derived from his behaviour, like his inability to look at the ‘sad eyes’ of the ‘rookie’ or him getting sassed and mocked by his commanding officer, Hawthorne. Or his annoyance with the autopilot device I.V.A.N. on his spacecraft. He’s the kind of guy you want to give a big, comforting hug to, so he can take a breather, you know?
Hawthorne’s arc also contributes to the emotional depth of Lightyear’s first half. I loved the mentor-mentee dynamic between the two of them, and got rather emotional at one point! My love for Sox, before we actually get to know this genius kitty, originates from the fact that Buzz needed someone to talk to and be there for him. Of course, Sox nails it, and also provides plenty of comic relief throughout the film!
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The second half of Lightyear introduces a motley crew of characters like young Izzy Hawthorne, new recruit Mo Morrison who is fascinated by the most random things, and an elderly woman who is actually a paroled convict, Darby Steel. Their charm is their clumsiness and naïveté which, coupled with their enthusiasm to be of some help to Buzz to bring down the big bad, Emperor Zurg, and his robotic cronies, often result in sparse but warm comic moments.
Of course, you already know that Lightyear is meta; not just another prequel but the movie that spawned a toy in Pixar’s beloved Toy Story films. In the latter, Buzz Lightyear actually has a much lighter persona, and to get there, he must take the hero’s journey of failure and self-discovery. His rigid sense of duty and the need to carry the weight of every responsibility, every team member’s future, on his shoulder is perhaps his biggest enemy. And that’s what he must defeat in the third act of the film.
Lightyear’s story and the themes it explores are very on-brand for Pixar, and I actually love that they chose this as an origin story for Buzz. But Houston, we have a problem.
Also Read: Chris Evans Frustrated With ‘Lightyear’s’ Ban In 14 Countries, Says LGBTQ+ Representation Should Be A Norm In Films
The misfortunes befalling our hero get repetitive, and too much dialogue weighs the scenes down
You could very well call this film 100 Years Of Solitude and Bad Luck for Buzz Lightyear because after a point that’s what it starts feeling like. I have a soft spot for animated films, and it really pains me to say this but Lightyear gets downright yawn-inducing in parts, and for multiple reasons.
First, the clumsiness and resulting misfortunes befalling Buzz and his team get repetitive after a point. It’s like one failure after another. In the first half, they manage to avoid this by using montages that work because it involves characters we have known and care for. However, as Buzz, Izzy, and the rest try to bring down the bad guys and complete their mission, they keep falling down and the bad guys just keep getting up. After a point, you want it to be over because you cannot take any more amateur mistakes by the characters and plot twists. I was physically tired for Buzz when one of his teammates ruins their plan for what seemed like the tenth time. The guy just wants to go home. Please, let him find his peace.
Second, there’s just too much dialogue. A LOT of talking and not enough feeling. Buzz himself is a character who talks a lot, and then you give him friends who also gab, and it’s just a lot of conversation that bogs down the scenes and makes them feel more stretched and tedious than they needed to be. The film stands still for those moments and nothing of consequence happened. You could’ve done a pee break and come back and it would still make sense.
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Third, the dialogues don’t always make you feel stuff because despite all that conversation we don’t actually get to invest in these new characters added to the story. Why is this rag-tag team of people together? What is their motivation to do what they are doing? Why do we care for them? Only Izzy is the one with a bit of a backstory that makes you care for her; the other two are just there for minimal comic relief and maybe to miss turns so Buzz can take the long road home. They’re charming and cute, and funny also, no doubt. But all that talking isn’t making me care for them as much as I do for Buzz or grow their arc.
And finally, with all of these things bogging down the biggest plot twist of the film, which would’ve been super effective, by the time you arrive at the reveal, you don’t want to spend more time enjoying the meta-ness of it all because you’re already looking at your watch.
Chris Evans is a perfect Buzz Lightyear, but clearly, Sox is the hero of this film
Chris Evans, who has officially passed on the Captain America shield to Anthony Mackie’s Sam Wilson, is an on-point casting for space ranger Buzz Lightyear. Thanks to his MCU legacy, it’s easy to imagine him as a natural leader, a relentless ranger who obeys command, is secretly lonely, and wants to repair what’s broken by his hand all by himself, till he meets his found family. And also because of the way Buzz is at it to complete his mission, again and again, and never giving up, they really needed someone who could’ve done this all day, year, century. Evans deepens his voice quite a bit for this one, but his usual one peaks through in the more emotional scenes or when Buzz is down and low.
The rest of the voice cast, which includes, Keke Palmer (Izzy), James Brolin (Emperor Zurg), Taika Waititi (Mo), Dale Soules (Darby), Uzo Aduba (Commander Hawthorne), Mary McDonald-Lewis (I.V.A.N), Efren Ramirez (Airman Diaz), and Isiah Whitlock Jr (Commander Burnside), play it well. There’s also a legit astronaut on this cast BTW, but I shall let you find that out for yourselves.
Okay, now can I tell you that OMG I LOVE SOX, YOU GUYS! This is the exact uncontrollable urge you feel when you see a cute pet or baby and you wanna smoosh their faces with hugs while also gobbling them up. Sox evokes all of those feelings in you, but because he is also a genius who technically saves everyone’s asses a lot, you want to give it that academic respect as well. Sox gives off major R2D2 vibes, y’all. And there’s a very sweet nod to Star Wars and Princess Leia’s message in the latter half of the film!
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Lightyear is undoubtedly a visual treat, with oodles of familiar film references
Lightyear looks fantastic! Evidently, much of the landscapes shown in the film as well as the spacecraft and tech we see borrow heavily from the familiar styles of space operas that we love. And the details are spectacular. It has lots of nods to some of your favourite sci-fi movies about space travel, like the obvious being Star Trek, and Star Wars. Emperor Zurg has a very Darth Vader-like presence and his minions remind you of Stormtroopers! The exploration of a new planet for hostile life forms, a genuine sense of duty in being a space officer that Buzz has, and the ‘rookie’ on the team, all give major Star Trek feels. And there are also scenes that will give you Interstellar and Top Gun: Maverick déjà vu.
Verdict
Lightyear actually serves as a great origin story for Buzz Lightyear and a prequel to the Toy Story films. It’s got the Pixar DNA with lots of heart and great humour, and oodles of squishable adorableness. And it would all work had the wordy dialogues and repetitiveness of its plot didn’t weigh down its lightness. Still, it remains mildly enjoyable. Fans should definitely watch it for Chris Evans as Buzz and his scenes with Sox the adorable robotic cat, who is a scene-stealer in every way!
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Lightyear is currently buzzing in theatres.
P.S.: Meow meow meow! (That means sit down, there are three post-credit scenes.)
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