An enjoyable, fun application of the superhero formula

Rating: 7/10 (10 May 2017)

The superhero model gets a family-friendly animated application in "Big Hero 6," the long-assumed byproduct of the Disney-Marvel partnership come to fruition. Not that these young children weren't already seeing Marvel's live-action heroes, but this way Disney- Marvel can hook them on superhero tropes at an even younger age.
Older kids and adults, however, might also find the world of San Fransokyo engaging and charming. The story follows boy genius Hiro (Ryan Potter), who is wasting his potential in the underground robot-fighting scene until his brother Tadashi (Daniel Henney) takes him to his high-tech university and introduces him to his nerdy-but- cool friends and professor. Inspired, Hiro creates an amazing invention to gain admittance to the school, but when it's stolen and used for evil, Hiro sets out with his brother's healthcare robot, Baymax (Scott Adsit), looking for answers.
Writers Robert L. Baird and Daniel Gerson ("Monsters University") and Jordan Roberts roll most of the superhero origin story conventions into their reimagining of this team of lesser-known Marvel characters. Hiro is the main character who has suffered great trauma in his formative years (Batman, Spider-Man) who is a technological genius capable of building awesome robots (Iron Man  and also Batman and Spider-Man). So the movie doesn't tackle anything new for this genre, but it does package themes of loss, friendship, family and heroism into a form that children can digest.
The objective is not all that different from Disney and Pixar's 2004 collaboration "The Incredibles," but the difference is "Big Hero 6" feels much more modern and "The Incredibles" more "classical" as far as superhero movies go. Directors Don Hall (2011 "Winnie the Pooh") and Chris Williams ("Bolt") create a vibrant hybrid city in San Fransokyo and let nothing hold back the imagination. Their story is steeped in the tech-driven superhero world, and even though completely implausible, doesn't feature characters with special biological abilities (like "The Incredibles"), only smart characters that are driven and motivated (who have really good access to tech).
The soul of "Big Hero 6," however, is Baymax, the tubby, inflatable robot who Hiro turns into a heroic fighting machine. With his prime directive being to care for those who are injured or unwell, Baymax has acute insight into Hiro's fluctuating feelings (in fact there's a running puberty joke in the film). He's also an unlikely hero in that he's a big softie who doesn't want to harm anyone. He's the best source of comic relief in the film too, especially compared with T.J. Miller's Fred, who is sort of the obnoxious, weird friend. To the script's credit, however, Fred has all the lines that wink to the adults in the audience about how closely this story adheres to the comic book movie formula.
"Big Hero 6" is a fun superhero adventure with a strong moral story arc. Although it throws some curveballs in terms of plot and emotions, nothing about it is all that surprising or original; it's a well-executed use of a reliable formula.
~Steven C
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