Very well done departure

Rating: 10/10 (27 November 2004)

This is a different film from previous Pixar/Disney collaborations. As with previous films, the graphics are outstanding. Much like Finding Nemo the graphics are so well done that you are not consciously aware of their provenance. Even though the cast is exclusively humans, the images are engaging without taking you out of the film. The soundtrack does an excellent job of conveying the tone of the scene. Both the images and sounds pay homage to other genres and films without name-dropping.
Where the previous Pixar/Disney collaborations emphasize the youthful fun over the adult conflict, this film moves the conflict to center stage. This is a film about a man struggling to balance his metier and his obligations and a woman trying to hold her family together. The setting of this conflict amidst superheros ultimately makes this film so enjoyable. But, unlike Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc., and Toy Story, this film feels like a drama. (In that regard it reminds me of Bird's The Iron Giant.)
In other words, rather than a kid's film that adults can enjoy, this is an adult's film that kids can enjoy.