A Reel Review: LIGHTYEAR

In 1995, in Disney and Pixar’s magnificent TOY STORY, a young boy named Andy receives one of his favorite toys, the Buzz Lightyear action figure. That action figure was based on Andy’s favorite movie. This is that movie. 

 

Buzz Lightyear (voiced by Chris Evans), and his crew of 1200 crash-land on a hostile planet. Desperate to escape, Buzz begins experimenting with hyper-speed, with each mission sending him forward in time. After several attempts and decades passed, Buzz teams up with the granddaughter of his old best friend and a team of misfits just as a new threat arrives…

 

Directed by Angus MacLane, LIGHTYEAR serves the same purpose as Woody’s Roundup as introduced in TOY STORY 2 (1999), which explained the origin of Woody the cowboy doll. It’s an origin tale with a different mission; instead of going through the building blocks of a character showing where they learn their catchphrases and suits and weapons, LIGHTYEAR instead starts the film off with a fully functional Buzz. He’s already there with his familiar suits and mannerisms, and yes…catchphrases, but the mission here is to make Buzz better; a better person, hero, and of course…Space Ranger. 

 

To do that, Buzz zips through time and space and eventually lands in the company of a team of misfits who barely qualify as rookies (voiced by Keke Palmer, Dale Soules, and Taika Waititi), and they eventually learn to work together to fight off a new incoming threat. It’s Buzz’s story to grow and get better, and his actions drive the film…making LIGHTYEAR a true character-driven adventure. 

 

LIGHTYEAR lives up to its name. The film blasts along at a hyper-pace, and a lot happens in just the first 20 minutes. As brisk as the pacing is, the necessary pauses are very well timed. The action and dramatic elements are excellent, and every laugh a good hoot. For the first time in a few films, the Pixar animation returns to its inter-stellar, photo-realistic animation style and the films looks amazing. The design work and attention to detail done on the spaceships and the many controls gives LIGHTYEAR a lived-in, realistic look. Director Angus MacLane composes the film as a loving homage to the best sci-fi films of the last 40 or 50 years, and picking up on the winks and nods (some subtle, some not), is half the fun. Michael Giacchino’s score is excellent. 

 

Chris Evans is perfect as Buzz and gives the character a new soul. The rest of the cast is excellent with a few surprises. The show is stolen by Sox, a robotic cat and Buzz’s companion (voiced by Peter Sohn). 

 

Speaking of surprises, LIGHTYEAR has a twist in the third act that is a mind-blower (albeit a tad confusing), and the final resolution is done in the classic Pixar style of the main character getting what he wanted, but just not in the way they were intending. As an “origin” story (as we’ve come to know the term), it works but in a different way. When watching TOY STORY now we can have a new appreciation to Andy’s excitement when he gets his Buzz Lightyear toy…because the movie it hails from is nothing short of magnificent. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: See it