The Mosley Review: Soul
Pixar Animation Studios has always been the place you looked to find great animated stories that children will enjoy while connecting with adults. On that pedigree alone, they changed what animated films could be. Pixar has had some misses in the sequels, but their ambition outweighs their failures. Year after year they have had success as their stories reached the hearts of all generations, but this film is a new step for the company. For the first time, Pixar has released a film that is more adult focused than children. The many themes of enlightenment, chasing your dreams, spirituality and finding ones purpose are all fantastic, but may go way over a child's head. Its the strength of the film, but also a weakness. I still enjoyed the level of beauty and elegance in its story, but I just felt that there was a more adult themed story that was confined to a kids film and is waiting to burst out.
The voice cast was outstanding across the board. Jamie Foxx was great as Joe Gardner, the music teacher whose true passion is Jazz. I loved every moment he was at the piano bringing to life some amazing tunes and I felt his infectious passion and devotion to his craft. His entire journey of fighting to fulfill his dream was great and at times he was selfish, but there was someone there to make him selfless. Tina Fey is the soul named 22 and she was fantastic as a soul that had no desire to live on Earth. Her views are relatable however nihilistic they may be, but through Joe, she experiences life on Earth. Their chemistry was great and tense at times and I enjoyed their bonding moments. Alice Braga and Richard Ayoade were hilarious and joyful as the soul counselors of the Great Before named Jerry. Rachel House was awesome and determined as the soul counter Terry. Terry was not necessarily the villain, but more of the threat of time running out. I loved Graham Norton as Moonwind and his view on being in "The Zone". Phylicia Rashad was excellent as Joe's mother Libba and I loved that she was the reality check for him. Libba was always there for Joe, but she was the voice realistic reason he needed to hear if the gig life doesn't work out. Questlove was cool as Curley the drummer of Dorothea Williams band and former student of Joe. Angela Bassett was powerful, striking and commanding as Dorothea Williams. She may not have been in the film for a huge amount of time, but when she is, your attention is on her.
The score by musical greats Jon Baptiste, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross come together and create such a fun, energetic and moving Jazz based score that is tasty. Its definitely up there in the category of best animated scores from a Pixar film. The cinematography is breathtaking and the animation is superb and crisp in the Great Before and on Earth. Like I said previously, this is a more adult oriented film that seems to have not been meant for kids. The many themes in this film are great and well explored, but it seems a bit constrained. Overall, I enjoyed this film, but I wouldn't put this in the upper echelon of Pixar films. Let me know what you thought of the film or of my review in the comments below. Thanks for reading!
