2006 | Dir. John Lasseter | 116 Minutes
"Back then, the road didn't cut through the land like that interstate. It moved with the land, it rose, it fell, it curved. Cars didn't drive on it to make great time. They drove on it to have a great time."
Racer Lightning McQueen is an arrogant and selfish competitor. After a mishap on his way to California for a title race, McQueen finds himself stranded in Radiator Springs, a small forgotten town along Route 66 lined with charming small businesses. McQueen befriends the locals and learns humility.
Unmistakably a passion project helmed by Pixar Animations Studios founder John Lasseter, Cars depicts a vibrant world inhabited by anthropomorphized automobiles that lends itself to gags that are a little too easy without requiring much thought. Unfortunately, the film lacks the energy and heart to carry it to the great heights of other films in the Pixar library, a feature that usually seems to be such a natural part of the Pixar tradition. While the story of Radiator Springs may ring true especially to those who are nostalgic for the glory days of Route 66, Lightning McQueen's journey to become a humbler champion is ultimately uninspiring as it is presented in the film.
Owen Wilson is charming but bland as Lightning McQueen, and the lack of chemistry between his performance and Bonnie Hunt's turn as the curvaceous Porsche Sally Carrera is a noticeable flaw. Legendary Hollywood actor Paul Newman brings gravitas to the role of the authoritative Doc Hudson, easily the best performance of the film. The feature's breakout character, Mater the tow truck voiced by stand-up comic Larry the Cable Guy really dialing up his trademark Southern drawl, is as one-note and charmless as one may expect, a little too dumb and a little too lacking in heart. NASCAR legend Richard Petty provides the voice for defending Piston Cup Champion Strip "The King" Weathers. Character actors and comedians Tony Shalhoub, Cheech Marin, George Carlin, Paul Dooley, Jeremy Piven and Michael Keaton lend their voices to the broad characters that round out the supporting cast.
Cars is the first big swing and miss from Pixar Animation Studios. Despite featuring Pixar's high standard of thoughtful production design and technologically gorgeous animation, the story suffers from its over-simplicity and is a colorful but unengaging affair.
JOHN RATZENBERGER AS...
- Mack
- Piggy Truck
- Abominable Snow Plow
- Flea car
A113
- The number on the freight train that nearly crashes into Lightning McQueen
- Mater's license plate number
PIXAR INTERCONNECTIVITY
- Lightning McQueen races in the Piston Cup in hopes of winning the sponsorship of Dinoco, the gasoline company first featured in Toy Story
- The birds from 2000 Pixar animated short For the Birds can be seen sitting on a powerline during McQueen and Mack's drive to California
- An anthropomorphized version of the Pizza Planet delivery truck from Toy Story can be seen in the stadium for the final Piston Cup race
- During the end credits, Mack watches scenes from car versions of Pixar films Toy Story (featuring Tom Hanks and Tim Allen as car versions of Woody and Buzz), A Bug's Life (featuring Dave Foley as a car version of Flik), and Monsters, Inc. (featuring John Goodman and Billy Crystal as car versions of Sulley and Mike) at a drive-in theater, and makes a jab about how all of his characters share the same voice actor
FRAGMENTS
- Dedicated co-director, storyboard artist, and Pixar mainstay Joe Ranft who passed away in 2005 before the film's release, this film features his final voice role as Red the firetruck
