New Mushroomton wasn’t the busy, busking metropolis it always was, once upon a time, there was-MAGIC! And wizards, centaurs, mermaids, fairies, all lived together in harmony aided by the comfort and convenience of magic.
But magic was hard, and soon, science and technology gave the same comfort that it did and so, these magical creatures put down the wand and took up, the cellphone, centaurs gave up running in the wild, for the comfort of driving a car and the rest they say, is history.
Now every bit of a modern city, New Mushroomton has forgotten its magical legacy, which only lives as amusement in role playing games and providing entertainment in restaurants for children’s parties.
The first non-sequel film for PIXAR, since 2017’s “Coco” – “Onward” goes back to the roots of family and deals with childhood grief and a little sibling love. We meet the Lightfoots, a family of blue skinned elves, their father, an accountant passed away just before the youngest of two brothers, Ian was born. With no memories of his Dad, Ian is hungry for any story about him, he treasures photos on his wall of the father he never met and listens to a recorded voice, imagining conversations with him. Ian voiced by Tom Holland is a shy and awkward teen, while his elder brother Barley voiced by Chris Pratt is obsessed with the same role playing game, on which much of their history is based on. According to their mom, Barley in on the “longest gap year”. Barley was still young when their father passed away and has three memories of their dad.
On Ian’s 16th birthday, their mom gives them a gift which their dad left behind, a wizard’s staff and a spell which allows them to spend the day with their father but the spell only half works-literally! This is when only the bottom half of their father materializes. With only twenty-four hours before the spell ends, the brothers must work together and go on a quest (really, Barley insists that its a quest) for that last chance to be with their dad. (Tears are starting to fall. Be strong, Ica).
Never has a Pixar film been so personal to me as ONWARD, so this review may come out as a bit biased. You see, I lost my Dad when I was ten years old, so that makes me Barley and like Ian, my brother never got to meet our Dad. So yes, the trailer alone had tears streaming down on my face and that familiar twist in the heart kind of ache.
Writer-Director Dan Scanlon lost his father when he was a year old and has no memory of him, so you see, this story is so real and personal that it really speaks to those of us who have had to live out the rest of our lives without a parent. Its an unspeakable loss, the feeling of being robbed, and this film deals with it in such a nice, warm, funny and “Pixar” way. Even the ultimate reunion scene is done is such an unexpected way, its so beautiful and undeniably moving.
Aside from dealing with childhood grief, the film also looks into family and sibling love and realising the importance of those left behind and its also not all about Dad, their Mom, Laurel (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) gets her moment in the sun too, and also has a very important role in the story.
Once upon a time there was magic, but it did not vanish, it was not replaced with modern conveniences and technology, its still there, it still is and it comes in the form of love and family. Sometimes we just need to go on a quest or an adventure to remember.