Being a huge Disney Pixar fan, I obviously had to go and watch Cars 3 in cinemas this Summer, despite Cars considered being the weakest franchise of them all. That doesn’t bother me at all because I really enjoyed watching the first Cars movie. The sequel was not very good though. It was good entertainment, but disappointing to Cars fans, since it drove the franchise into an entirely useless direction. Luckily it wasn’t a one-way street because Cars 3, in my opinion, managed to redeem the franchise.
I was intending on reviewing this movie, however nothing should ever be too formal on this blog. Instead, I am going to discuss the main theme this movie showcases and how it accelerated the franchise into a suitable and interesting perspective.
Now, first of all, I am going to be spoiling the movie. I advise you only read on if you don’t mind spoilers or if you have seen the movie yourself. If you haven’t seen the movie, watch it or don’t read this post at all! You have been warned.
Cars 3 happens to contain so many themes and morals, just like most other Pixar movies. It explores the consequences of age, how failure feeds into success, elements of feminism and the true glory behind racing. There are many other themes explored, however I am going to talk about the one that I really like.
Throughout the whole movie, we see the struggle Lightning McQueen faces without his former mentor, Doc Hudson. If you didn’t know, Doc Hudson’s voice actor – Paul Newman – died on 26th September 2008; two years after the release of Cars and, as a result, Pixar decided to eliminate Doc from the franchise. In Cars 2, Doc was only mentioned to have passed away (very briefly) towards the beginning of the movie. The mistake Pixar made at that moment was that they immediately stopped exploring it. Luckily, Cars 3 is the belated sequel the fans always wanted.
It is evident that Cars 3 is a tribute movie to Paul Newman, since his character co-drives the movie, even though he is mostly mentioned through the characters. He appears now and then in the movie through flash-back sequences and even through new material; the team at Pixar managed to implement unused voice recordings of Paul Newman from the first movie, which I think was an incredible innovation.
Anyway, we never got to see much of Doc and Lightning’s relationship, however it is pretty clear that it was a close one and lead Lightning to win more Piston Cup races. Lightning is older in this movie and is being outrun by then new generation of cars, featuring the new rookie: Jackson Storm. In order for McQueen to have a chance in beating Storm, he would have to train hard for it.
Most of the movie focuses on McQueen and Cruz Ramirez (his trainer). Cruz is one of the best trainers in the field and assists Lightning with technological gear that will ultimately help him gain momentum. However, as the movie progresses, we start to see the training reverse. The more and more we get to know about Cruz and her life-long dream to become a racer, the more we see Lightning influencing Cruz. It is a gradual change that made the movie appealing to me, despite its predictable nature.
It largely impacts the third act of the movie, where McQueen is meant to be facing Storm at the Florida Speedway. As it so happens, McQueen decides to let Ramirez take over the race for him as he sees good potential of her executing a win. Throughout the Smokey training montages, we see Cruz gaining the edge and from then on, we contemplate the inevitability of her success in the final race.
Interestingly, lots of fans were disappointed with the ending of this movie. We all wanted Lightning to win, so that we can feel satisfied with his accomplishment, however the movie takes a U-turn and lets Cruz win. In my opinion, I thought this ending was good. It was constantly foreshadowed, especially after the Demolition Derby scene. I do have some faults with the ending, but I thought it perfectly portrays and reiterates the important message of the film.
There is one scene in the movie where Smokey takes Lightning to his garage to reveal to Lightning what Doc felt like being the crew chief of the Rusteze Racing Team. This was one of my favourite scenes in the movie. Smokey shows Lightning a bunch of letters Doc sent to Smokey whilst training McQueen and it turns out he was happier than ever. This taught Lightning something important. Whereas Lightning undoubtedly says to Stirling “The racing is the reward, not the stuff”, early in the movie, he realises that the best thing about racing is sharing your knowledge, talent and skill to your apprentice. Throughout his training, Lightning actually trains Cruz Ramirez. This scene tied up the main secret message of the movie, which is to seek happiness from helping others.
And that is why Cruz Ramirez became the champion of the final race in the movie.
I love this message so much just because it is so relevant in real life too. It also challenges McQueen’s fear of retirement by providing him a way to stay tuned into racing. In the end, he becomes the crew chief Doc Hudson once was and will hopefully find the enjoyment when guiding Cruz to even more victory. The structure is cyclical and I think it nicely ties in with the first Cars movie.
If you have not seen Cars 3 already and you love animated films, I suggest you go and see it. I have to admit, it isn’t up there with the top Pixar movies, but I found the movie moving in many areas, though it isn’t a strong comedy like the first one. Furthermore, the animation is outstanding, as usual. I am not kidding – certain shots looked photo-realistic!
If you have seen Cars 3, I would love to hear your favourite theme in the film and your overall impressions of the movie.
I Waddle On 