Cars 2

"Star race car Lightning McQueen and his pal Mater head overseas to compete in the World Grand Prix race. But the road to the championship becomes rocky as Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage."

Pixar Studios have a reputation that needs little or no fanfare, having revolutionised the world of animation for the last 25 years, and indeed they continue to do so. Unlike other animation houses, the Pixar brand is a name people have come to expect high quality product from. The Toy Story trilogy remains the studio's calling card, but we have arguably reached a point where an audience need know no plot, characters or even movie title - if the Pixar logo is on the front of the film, we can expect it to be a heart-warming, charming story, filled with loveable characters, previously unimaginable worlds, and a great deal of warm humour. Looking back at Pixar's last 3 releases, we see Wall-E, Up, and Toy Story 3 - all films which of course appeal to a kids' audience, but also all share bittersweet moments of tear-inducing joy and sadness, transcending the easily-dismissible "cartoon" into something with legitimate emotive power that affects adults just as much as children (if not more sometimes). This in turn brings us to Cars 2.

The sequel to 2006's anthropomorphic smash hit, once again we are in the company of sentient vehicles. The twist this time is that the film's hero is no longer racing car "Lightning McQueen" but his bumbling , rusting hick-redneck cliché "Mater" (voiced by no other than blue collar comedian Larry The Cable Guy). Mater stumbles his way into the paths of international super-spy cars Finn McMissile (Caine) and his female assistant Holly Shiftwell (Mortimer). Before you can say The Man Who Knew Too Much, Cars 2 accelerates into a jet setting, globe- trotting espionage thriller. Put simply, Cars 2 wants to be a James Bond movie. Once the spy setting is established, the film grasps the opportunity and fully embraces it - McMissile in particular has more gadgets & toys than Pierce Brosnan & Daniel Craig combined, and Caine's voice acting betrays a genuine sense of fun that he had in performing the role.

Inevitably, what you see on screen is Pixar demonstrating once again why they have such a loyal following : automobile-themed versions of the main three cities- London, Tokyo, and a thinly veiled Monaco all look spectacular on the screen, bursting with vibrant bright colours, clever details and vignettes to keep the eye constantly busy. The character animation is of the usual high Pixar standard, and there is more "violent" action & explosions in this film than possibly any other Pixar movie.
So, with all of these positive elements going for it, you may be wondering why Cars 2 has been roundly ganged up on by most critics. There are a number of faults or issues that have played a part in this. The original

Cars movie may have been aimed at a very young audience, so it was its simplicity that both endeared the film to kids but also alienated the more grown up audience of Pixar fans. With Cars 2, the film itself has grown up - the plot is far more complex and complicated than its predecessor - young children will most likely struggle to comprehend and will inevitably get bored by the espionage elements, double-crossing characters & archly contrived plot.. However, it still has a lot of Mater based slapstick, coarse humour which parents will tut at rather than laugh along with, so effectively, the film doesn't really know who it's playing to - too grown up for a lot of kids, but too juvenile for a lot of adults, it walks a very delicate line. The Cars franchise is also notable for being the most merchandise-generating of all of Pixar properties. Lunchboxes, bed sets, clothes, games, toys: billions of dollars are generated for the Disney corporation each year by Lightning McQueen and his gang. Inevitably cynics will decry the film for being a cash cow, and will resent it for getting a sequel before other popular choices like Monsters Inc or The Incredibles. This cynicism in itself has evolved into a vocal concern about Pixar in general, and a lowering of standards that have to date been impeccable and unmatchable. In effect, critics have been punishing the studio for "selling out." It would seem unlikely that Pixar will really object to the negativity though - already Cars 2 has grossed over $280million at the American box office - evidence if any be needed that the studio's films really are critic-proof.

With beautiful visuals, a zippy plot, numerous pop culture references, and maybe less heart and earnestness than previous Pixar adventures, Cars 2 is an interesting beast of a film. It may well be the worst reviewed Pixar film to date, but indulge this critic's different, optimistic opinion: this feels like a solid Dreamworks animation. The crown may have slipped somewhat, but it still sits on the head of the best animation studio of our time.

Cars 2 is released across the UK from Friday July 22nd.