Fantastic! A seventh Pixar gem!

Rating: 9/10 (11 June 2006)

Who cares about negative hype? Who cares about presumption? Who cares about others ridiculing the concept?
None of that matters once you've actually seen Cars!
Cars is very well done, in its spectacular (and well researched) details of Mid-Western and South-Western scenery, the cars themselves, the lighting and reflection/refraction that will make you say "wow" times over throughout, the opening sequence, etc., but also in its excellent Lasseter-style characterizations, story arcs, and interactions. This movie really has it all, despite the fact that humans do not exist in its universe. You really stop caring (if you even did going into it) that they are all cars after only a few minutes...And seeing the movie twice is a very high recommendation. Kids may not enjoy this movie as much as say, the original Toy Story audience that I am a part of (16-19 or so), to see it twice in a row, but it takes two or three viewings to get all of what Lasseter is doing and to truly marvel at how well done the animation is. Plus, it's enjoyable each time through!
On a personal note, I have to say that I am sick of people trying to constantly rank each new Pixar film based upon those before it. It's great that Pixar has a "bar", and I think that each movie they have released meets it, but arguing over the newest features as 'inferior' is a fool's argument. We pretty much know that Pixar productions are the best, and they are the undisputed masters of animation...(and please remember that, despite the movie being released now, the final rendering was down over a year ago, with many of the designs, animations, and effects being done in separate groups over four years of rendering production. They are already able to, and usually rendering another movie, at a graphical level above that of their films in current release...)
Anyways, I recommend this movie for about 7 or 8 year olds and up....Smaller children have a problem with this movie (I've seen it four times, and each time, younger children don't follow it too well) but it is still very family friendly. The storyline is great, the effects are fantastic, and the direction of John Lasseter makes this an extremely enjoyable ride!