Director Dan Scanlon ("Monsters University") and producer Kori Rae will helm "Onward" the next project for the wizards over at Pixar. The film, as described by Disney’s official synopsis, “centers on two teenage elf brothers who go on a quest to discover if there is still magic left in the world.”
Pixar’s last release, this summer's "Toy Story 4," came off the heels of some rather disappointing sequels from the toon company. With the exception of “Toy Story 2” and “Toy Story 3,” Pixar has had a rather lackluster set of sequels delivered to us since its inception back in 1995. Sure, there were things to love about "Finding Dory," “Toy Story 4,” and "Monster University," maybe less so when it came to "Cars 2,” "Cars 3," but they all lacked the overall focus and thematic resonance of the originals. In short, These were films that didn't really need a sequel.
However, when Pixar focuses on original content that’s when the magic happens — think of their last two originals ("Coco" and "Inside Out,") both wondrous visions that showcased the company's indelible talents as visionaries. "Onward" has the voices of Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, and Octavia Spencer. The just-released trailer hasn’t got me too excited, the jokes are hit and miss, but it’s about time they lay off their sequelitis and focus on telling new stories.
By the looks of it, “Onward” may not stack up to top-tier Pixar such as “Wall-E,” “Ratatouille,” Up,” but it’s a welcome return to the less-nostalgia and more-storytelling approach of their glory days. I wouldn’t bank all my stock on “Onward” winning the Best Animated Feature Oscar in 2021, rather Pete Docter’s “Soul,” which comes out only a few months after, will be the biggie next year for the toon company.
“Onward” comes out on March 6, 2020.
”Soul” will be released on June 19th, 2020.