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Author Topic: Cars 2 (2011) Stu Jamieson Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 524 From: Buccan, Qld, Australia Registered: Jan 2008 posted 06-25-2011 08:23 PM                     When the first Cars movie was released in 2006, it hit screens around the same time as The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift. This allowed for an interesting direct comparison between an established car movie franchise and Pixar's interpretation of that style of movie. The result was that Pixar kicked Tokyo Drift's butt in terms of raw, seat-of-your-pants racing excitement. And Cars 2 is no exception, again capturing the essence of motor racing - the cacophony, the flash, the motion blur, perfectly capturing the thrill of the race. Add into this a James Bond style action plot concerning a cabal of automotive lemons attempting to sully the allure of biofuels by eradicating beautiful sports cars and we have a sequel which betters it's predecessor. This time around Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) takes a back seat and the far more interesting Mater (Larry the Cable Guy) takes centre stage with support from Her Majesty's secret agents, Finn McMissile (Michael Caine) and Holly Shiftwell (Emily Mortimer). The action is smart and thrilling with lots of little references to pop culture and people, the likes of which we've come to expect from the Pixarians. In a particularly nice touch and in a show of respect to the recently deceased Paul Newman, his vehicular counterpart, Doc Hudson, is now also deceased. Every Pixar film is prefaced by a short film and Cars 2 is no exception. This time around it's a Toy Story short which is cute but naturally lacks the originality of Day and Night or Partly Cloudy or For the Birds. It is, however, appropriate for the target audience and the kiddies won't be disappointed. Although some distance off the pinnacle of Pixar's work, Cars 2 is a competent and entertaining effort and its increased action and complexity of story is a solid improvement on its predecessor. 8 out of 10.  |  IP: Logged Mark J. Marshall Film God Posts: 3188 From: New Castle, DE, USA Registered: Aug 2002 posted 06-26-2011 12:40 AM                    I really enjoyed this movie. I was worried going in due to the reviews here, but I was pleasantly surprised. Mater didn't bother me in the least in the first movie. And he didn't bother me in this one either. He is in NO WAY a comparison to Jar Jar Binks. And what's with people saying that the story had too much going on to keep up with it all? The story was fine for me. I asked my wife afterward and she said the same thing. So I don't get that at all. I think you guys must have watched a different movie or something. The story was great. The gags were funny (the car going through the metal detectors at the air port with it's tires off was great), the action was great, the animation was top notch. I enjoyed it. And saw it in 3D on a Sony projector - so the eyes were in pretty good sync, which is always a plus. No temporal problems - although I did notice some in some of the trailers, which I thought was weird. Maybe they're coded differently. Oh, and what the hell is up with the 3D in Spy Kids? That 3D looked like total fake crap. I though RR shot his movies in 3D...? This trailer was certainly at least a partial conversion. And a horrible one.  |  IP: Logged Sam Graham AKA: "The Evil Sam Graham". Wackiness ensues. Posts: 1431 From: Waukee, IA Registered: Dec 2004 posted 06-26-2011 04:07 PM                        CINEMA: Rave Westroads 14, Omaha, NE AUDITORIUM: 11 PRESENTATION: Christie 2k DLP (2D) PRESENTATION PROBLEMS: Loud music leaking from the First Church of the Neighboring Auditorium RATING: Two and one half stars (out of four) A 9:30am matinee? Okay. Smiling Ticket Seller takes my money, inputs stuff into the POS screen, and no ticket appears. Tries again. And again. "I'm sorry, it's not printing. I'll be right back." She runs into the lobby. I turn to see the line of people waiting to buy tickets. I explain. "She broke the box office." A few people say "Oh", and everybody looks understanding, or at least less confused. Smiling Ticket Seller appears with a manager, and they solve the problem by opening another register and printing from there. THE PLOT: Tow Mater, International Truck of Mystery. Wackiness ensues. The Jar Jar Binks comparison IS valid. Lucas banked on Jar Jar catching on with kids, and he didn't. Pixar did the same thing with Mater, and it isn't working. A family of five walked out of this screening an hour in because their kids got bored and wanted to leave. This is not the first such situation I've heard of. Still, I basically enjoyed it and suspect I'd enjoy it a little more on a repeat viewing. There's certainly lots to look at here, all sorts of little easter eggs to watch out for (the Radiator Springs Drive-in is showing "The Incredimobiles", the restaurant in Ratatouille gets a cameo in the credits, and one of the Grand Prix sponsors was "Lassityres"). The new Fiat 500 sure got a lot of background time. The international Grand Prix cities were gorgeous, especially London. The rendering of Radiator Springs, on the other hand, actually looked a little less detailed by comparison. Even the Cars characters popped a little more in the last Grand Prix scenes before the end scenes at home. "Hawaiian Vacation" was freaking awesome. To continue the death watch theme, George Carlin's "Fillmore" character DOES return, voiced by somebody I've never heard of.  |  IP: Logged Kurt Zupin Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 989 From: Maricopa, Arizona Registered: Oct 2004 posted 06-28-2011 07:09 AM                     I watched this one after work tonight, and like I stated earlier. Cars is Pixars franchise that is strictly for kids. Everything in this movie is set up for children 10 and under. That doesn't make it a bad movie, but it also doesn't put it on a level with their other great films. I thought the first half was excellent and had a good set up, but once the middle and last half got around I wanted to walk out. I was bored out of my mind. The scenic stuff is amazing as is expected. The Toy Story short was nothing short of brilliant as stated by everyone else as well. 2.5/5  |  IP: Logged Jonathan Goeldner Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1360 From: Washington, District of Columbia Registered: Jun 2008 posted 06-28-2011 09:55 AM                     um, impressive animation and some fun action scenes pretty much hide the fact that the script is so subpar for a Pixar film - ultimately mediocre, but less annoying than the first film. I didn't think the 3D aspect brought anything to the enjoyment of the film - thankfully the image brightness from the Sony 4K projector was set properly. The 7.1 sound was probably the best part.  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 06-28-2011 12:22 PM                        quote: Kurt Zupin I thought the first half was excellent and had a good set up, but once the middle and last half got around I wanted to walk out. I was bored out of my mind. I had the opposite reaction. I really started getting into the story around the second act. We watched some of the scenes in 3-D last night (for our screening we watched 2-D) and I really enjoyed it. Makes me want to watch the whole thing in 3-D. The part where Mater is trapped in the clock tower is pretty cool.  |  IP: Logged Dennis Benjamin Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1445 From: Denton, MD Registered: Feb 2002 posted 07-03-2011 08:03 PM                        So Paul Newman passed away and in this film they recognize that with the reference to the "Hudson Hornet Museum" in the film. I believe there is something in the credits too. However, George Carlin passed away too. Yet -there is the VW Bus in this movie - WITH SOMEONE ELSE'S VOICE & no mention in the credits. Hollywood has double standards.  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 07-03-2011 09:11 PM                     Did they put a "Buddy Christ" on the dash or anything?  |  IP: Logged Jason Metcalfe Expert Film Handler Posts: 134 From: Austin, TX, U.S. Registered: May 2010 posted 07-05-2011 01:52 PM                     Did anyone else get this on 35mm and get the "projectionist trading cards" in the cans? I hated the movie but I thought these were awesome  |  IP: Logged Mike Blakesley Film God Posts: 12767 From: Forsyth, Montana Registered: Jun 99 posted 07-05-2011 08:31 PM                        I have all of the projectionist trading cards going back to The Incredibles. Do they go back farther than that? One nice thing about the Disney movies is how they put some extra thought into the informational goodies in the can. One of the films came with a handy magnet detailing the DCP naming conventions. That's the Disney attention to detail there. I watched this movie again with some family yesterday and we enjoyed it even more the second time. I love all the tiny details found in the backgrounds and on the cars. About Carlin not being "recognized" -- first, he wasn't known as a movie star, so I was thinking it's not as appropriate as Paul Newman's recognition. There have been lots of instances of dead people being replaced without recognition by others in sequels, the Harry Potter series being a famous recent example. It would have been nice to see a dedication to George in the credits though. Maybe his family asked for it not to happen.  |  IP: Logged Connor Wilson Expert Film Handler Posts: 190 From: Sterling, VA, USA Registered: Jan 2011 posted 07-20-2011 06:17 AM                     CINEMA: Regal Countryside 20, Sterling, VA AUDITORIUM: 9 PRESENTATION: Sony Digital 4K (RealD 3D) PRESENTATION PROBLEMS: During the climax of the film, there was this annoying glare coming out of the front exit of the auditorium. Thankfully, after like 10 minutes, the door was then closed. RATING: 5 (out of 10) Definitely Pixar's worst film, but in other standards, not a bad, nor a good film. That Toy Story short preceding the film was da bomb, though.  |  IP: Logged

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