If you’re like me, then Cars is far down the list of Pixar films (with probably only Cars 2 below it). So it was with some trepidation that I went to see the new movie Planes, set in the same world as Cars. Two things to note: First, I was dragged to see this against my will and second (and possibly more important) it’s not a Pixar movie. Planes is the first sequel to a Pixar movie made by Disney studios (which confuses everyone since Disney owns Pixar). Basically, a different group of people made Planes than made Cars. Sorry to say that they didn’t make it any better in their attempt. Let’s check it out.

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I love Monsters, Inc. It’s one of my favorite Pixar movies. The interactions between Mike, Sulley and Boo were just perfect and the emotion carried the story throughout the entire picture. So, I was a little worried about the prequel, Monsters University, especially since  Pixar’s last few movies were not at the same level of their earlier films (and Cars 2 was just plain mediocre). The movie is…decent. It’s not a bad movie, but it’s certainly not anyway near the level of Monsters Inc. Let’s check it out.

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The Pixar brand has lost some of it’s luster recently. Mostly due to it’s last movie, the mediocre at best Cars 2. That movie wasn’t the worst kids movie ever, that distinction probably belongs to The Stupids, but it seemed like a movie made for toy reasons rather than the story-driven approach that Pixar has become famous for. Their latest release, Brave, isn’t going to restore Pixar to the artistic pedestal they were once on, but it does stop the bleeding. Pixar’s first movie featuring female protagonists does pass the Bechdel Test, while still being a movie about Princesses and getting married to a Prince. So, let’s see who’s being brave.

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I found myself at the movies for a second week in a row. Normally I’m not this big a movie goer (well, not any more) and usually see “new” movies on cable. Sometimes they’re movies I want to see (such as Inception) and sometimes they’re just on (such as watching Sex Drive Saturday night which is a poorly made remake of The Sure Thing). But this time, for the first time in a couple years, I went to a movie on opening weekend and saw Cars 2. The original Cars was one of my least favorite Pixar movies, along with A Bugs Life, so I wasn’t exactly looking forward to the sequel. And, while it wasn’t as bad as I thought it might be, it wasn’t anywhere near Pixar’s usual standards. Let’s see why.

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