Soul (Animated Movie Review)

 

Title: Soul

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Fantasy, 

Language: English

Running time: 100 minutes

Released:  October 11, 2020 (BFI London Film Festival), December 25, 2020 (US)

Network: Disney+Hotstar

Rating: 4.4/5

Synopsis:

Joe Gardner, a pianist and middle school music teacher living in New York City, dreams of playing jazz professionally. Unfortunately, Joe falls down in manhole and finds himself as a soul heading towards the “Great Beyond”. Unwilling to die, he tries to escape but ends up in the “Great Before”, where counselors prepare unborn souls for life with the help of mentor souls. Joe takes on the assignment a soul – numbered 22 – to help her find her spark and way back to his home. This is where his life's purpose is questioned. 

Before we get into review some tidbits about this movie:

Soul is a American computer-animated fantasy drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Soul is the first Pixar film to feature an African-American protagonist. 

It was set to be theatrically released on November 20, 2020, but the release was cancelled due to Covid-19 pandemic. So, this movie became the first to be billed as a Disney+Original. 

It was a news article related to awards that pushed me to watch this.

This film won best animated feature and best original score at 93rd Academy Awards, Golden Globe Awards, BAFTA Awards, Critic’s Choice Awards and Annie Awards. Soul wins best animated feature film at OSCARS 2021.

Now let's see my review: 

Joe Gardner (voiced by Jamie Foxx) – a passionate jazz pianist and music teacher whose soul gets separated from his body after an open manhole accident. This character is assiduously created. He longs to get his moment in the spotlight. But, life has other plans for him. This characterization is so relatable. We can learn a lot from his struggle. At the end, this character will imprint humongous message about life on our hearts. 

A soul – numbered 22 (voiced by Tina Fey) – has a dim view of life, trapped in the Great Before. Her mien is a treat for our sore eyes and also makes us to think about our purpose of living.  

 

Director Pete Docter (best known for his direction of Monsters, Inc., Up and Inside Out). His directorial work is out of this world. Music by Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste is highly impressive. Pixar Animation Studios have done a pretty awesomesauce job. Their animation work stands out well. 

On the whole, this film delivers a strong message that it is absolutely okay to not have to figure out your life as long as you keep trying to live your life fullest. 

I highly recommend this movie to all the animation lovers and also to those who wonder about their life’s purpose.

Happy Watching!!!

"Soul" trailer