Charming

Rating: 8/10 (26 July 2006)

At first I didn't expect to be invested in these characters- they're not cute little fish or bugs that you can easily feel for, and they look nothing like humans, territory that Pixar has mastered. Then as the movie's gears began grinding and the story began to develop, I realized that I was looking at these cars as real people. The most amazing thing about this movie is how the Pixar team has managed to imbue these cars with so many ranges of emotion and movement that after a while you forget that they're made of metal and glass.
Of course none of that would really matter if the characters weren't likable and the story weren't good, so I'm happy to say that Pixar has done it again. It may not be as magical as Finding Nemo or as entertaining as The Incredibles, and the story may be a tad contrived at times, but that's to be expected from a cartoon. However, what made Nemo and the Incredibles great is that you didn't look at them as cartoons because their stories belonged in the world of live action. You never really forget that Cars is animation, but that's okay, because it's such a charming movie.
This is a very good movie that tells its story very well. It's comforting to know that Pixar still hasn't hit its slump, and Cars makes me look forward to the next gem from this studio.