Another Enjoyable Film From Pixar

Rating: 5/10 (7 September 2010)

The animated family film Cars is directed by John Lasseter and stars Owen Wilson, Paul Newman, and Bonnie Hunt. The film takes place in modern day world that is ruled by cars instead of humans.
The film starts off with Lightning McQueen (Wilson) preparing for a big race. McQueen is a car that is very self absorbed, hard to get along with, and all he wants to do is win. He is in a race with a total of forty three cars to win the acclaimed Piston Cup. After refusing to get his tires changed at a pit stop they fly off right on the last lap of the race and McQueen's two biggest competitors Chick Hicks and The King end up in a tie with him for the win. Because of the tie there has to be a race between the three of them to gain the Piston Cup and if McQueen wins he would be sponsored by the great Dynaco. But as his truck is taking him to the race in California McQueen falls out of the truck and is stuck in a small town, Radiator Springs, as a prisoner because he damaged the road while driving. McQueen must fix the road to be able to make it back to the race, but while in the town he meets some memorable cars like Doc Hudson (Newman), Sally Carrera (Hunt), and Mater (Larry the Cable Guy).
The writing for this film was very original and was a light enjoyable film. Unlike many of the other Pixar films this one does not have a great sense of depth or an underlying message. Yet it is easy to watch and will keep you entertained which is not an easy feat. It was somewhat corny but not so much that it was ridiculous to watch and it is a kid's film so you can't really expect for something drastically different. Now while watching this film I thought to myself that they made Toy Story again but instead of Toys or even bugs from A Bug's Life they used cars instead. I wonder how many films Lasseter can create that are about different sorts of inanimate objects or creatures other than humans.
The direction of this film I thought was quite good. Lasseter truly made a pleasant film with some nice performances from the whole cast. I really liked the shots he had at the beginning and towards the end of when the cars are speeding by in the race. Also I enjoyed all the shots of Lightning McQueen getting his photo taken. Lasseter makes many pleasurable films and this one is not an exception.
I know I have been using the word pleasurable a lot during this review so I will switch it up and say that the acting was as well delightful. Owen Wilson played McQueen and he did a fine job, it was nothing special but nothing special was really required. Paul Newman played the part of Doc Hudson and he was as well fine in his last feature film. I don't know if that is how he really sounds in real life but if not then he did a good job with his voice for the part. Bonnie Hunt was average as the love interest Sally Carrera, her part was no different really than any generic love interest. Larry the Cable Guy really brought a nice warm feeling to the film as the rusty pickup truck Mater with his comedic lines. Mater was definitely my favorite character of the film.
Overall I give this film a weak 7/10. I would recommend this film to anyone who is a fan of Pixar and enjoys family films.