A few weeks ago, Prof P and I had a discussion on whether or not Pixar had "jumped-the-shark" creatively. Between the critical bomb that was last year's Cars 2 and the current focus on cash-grabbing sequels/prequels, the company's days of game-changers like WALL·E (2008) and Up (2009) seem behind them. For me, the answer to this would rest in this year's Pixar offering Brave, and their first non-sequel since Up. So what is the answer? Well... yes and no... and I know that sounds like a lame answer, but hear me out.In some ways, it does seem like the Pixar bubble has burst, because Brave is merely good, not great, and that's an interesting thing to consider. In recent memory (but leaving Cars 2 out of the equation), Pixar has dominated both critically and commercially, sweeping the Oscars and topping the box office. Some of the aforementioned films and other offerings like The Incredibles (2004) are considered modern animated classics. In addition, Pixar is often credited as sustaining their parent company Disney. And all of this is certainly true to an extent, but you need to consider that this isn't necessarily the decline of Pixar, but more that it's coming back down to earth. Pixar reached incredible platitudes over the past decade, and now it's just settling back down. If anything, Brave is just as good if not better then the solid Pixar films from the turn of the millennium (ie. Monsters, Inc. (2001) or Finding Nemo (2003)), it's just not a masterpiece like its more recent predecessors.
That's all very well in a relative sense of the film, but Brave itself has a lot going for it to counter its flaws. First of all, the film is (not surprisingly) visually beautiful and technically accomplished. An entire animation department was responsible for only hair, and it shows with the fiery ginger that is the main character, Merida (a young Scottish princess that wants to live her life her way over an arranged life). The very fact that this is the first female lead in a Pixar film is also a plus, even if it didn't quite hit the critical notes of Mulan (1998) or The Princess and the Frog (2009). That being said, something that Brave does do very well is keep romance out of the story completely, which is a huge plus for this movie; otherwise, the film wouldn't have put up much of a punch at all, because the rest of the story is pretty weak. The eventual mother-daughter relationship theme is certainly important, but there's not much at stake in the end. And that's the primary problem with Brave: it doesn't go far enough, it isn't brave enough! The trailers made the film to be an adventure movie following a rogue princess on her quest for independence and self-fulfillment; however, what we get is literally one full day in the woods. For a film to wear its fantasy genre on its sleeve, it seems rather odd that it keeps itself to such a contained geography. It's as if the creators were ready to show more and go further, but just decided to only develop the characters. And this is a problem because the film is neither long enough nor written well enough to do that. The ultimate conflict is interesting but really too short and safe, and the resolution isn't earth-shattering by any means. Again, the film is still good and fine and enjoyable to look at, but I've just come to expect so much more from Pixar, and I can't help but feeling a little disappointed. Simply put, a Pixar masterpiece goes the extra mile; this didn't, but it made it to finish.
In the end, Brave doesn't kill Pixar for me, but it does make me wonder if they'll ever truly return to brilliance. Of course, time can only answer that. As for now, Pixar is still in fine shape, but maybe our expectations for Pixar should be a little bit more grounded for the next while.
McS
