Every once in a while, a film comes along that feels like a filmmaker announcing their arrival onto the scene in the loudest possible fashion. With Promising Young Woman, director and writer Emerald Fennell delivers a darkly funny, serious and distressing film. Paired with an actress whose comfort in this setting is practically unsettling, and you get one of the year’s best films.
As an animation studio, Pixar is no stranger to weightier concepts. Each Pixar film has some message of deeper meaning under the colorful animation and delightful characters, and Soul is no different. It still has all the charm and gorgeous animation you come to expect from Pixar, but with a dash of existentialism and a very easy metaphor for the meaning of life. Yeah, Pixar is going for it this time.
The late-breaking space film with hopes of awards glory is basically a staple of the yearly release calendar over the last eight years or so. A visual spectacle with an emotional story and a beautifully done score by a well regarded, award winning composer, and you’ve got the formula for a film that’s at least going to get the attention of awards bodies. However, if you don’t back that up with consistent storytelling or any good characterization, you’re left with another awards season slog.
