'Soul' film review: Reconciling dreams, purpose & beauty in everyday life
Pixar's latest, the comedic drama 'Soul' (available on Disney+ starting Dec. 25), asks the ponderous question 'what makes life worth living?'
In short: Struggling musician Joe (Jamie Foxx) finally gets his shot at performing live onstage - when he unexpectedly dies and is sent to the afterlife. To get back to Earth, he must help an unborn soul named 22 (Tina Fey) learn what makes life special. Questlove, Phylicia Rashad, Daveed Diggs and Angela Bassett also star.
Pixar has been the gold standard in animation for 25 years because their films are unafraid to tap into archetypal human truths. And 'Soul' is at its most compelling and emotionally honest when it explores the notion of living - truly living - life to its fullest, rather than just leading a life half lived. Joe's life on Earth ... is modest to say the least. Meanwhile 22 has absolutely no interest in taking the next step and becoming an earthbound soul. At its core, the film aspires to reconcile Joe and 22's thoughts on life.
Much like 'Inside Out' before it, 'Soul' ingeniously explores universal ideas that virtually everyone has considered at least once: ‘what is the purpose of life?’ There's a subtle profundity in the film's celebration of life's quiet, unassuming moments. 'Soul' shines in these fleeting, evocative experiences that 22 feels as she learns what it means to live - moments that trigger a sincere, grounded appreciation for the easy-to-overlook beauty in life's mundanities.
For a story that forces its protagonist to literally face life and death - to actually look into the void of the afterlife ... the stakes of 'Soul' do not matter. Time and again, Joe faces failure that puts his dreams and his very existence at risk. And time and again, 'Soul' just bails him out. Over and over and over. It's in these moments where the film loses grasp on its meaningful, thoughtful themes - and just gives Joe a free pass to keep going and keep the plot moving along.
One of the pitfalls that too many Pixar falls into is introducing a thought-provoking concept - then just devolving into a chase sequence. 'Up' begins with one of the most heart-wrenching opening sequences in animated film history - then becomes one old man chasing another old man. The first half of 'Wall-E' is soaring silent film - that becomes a power mad space ship robot chasing a trash collecting robot. As 22 experiences life and Joe laments all his lost opportunities ... 'Soul' (more than once) devolves into .. wait for it .. a chase sequence. But this one also involves a “talking” cat … cool.
The most cynical take on this film’s thesis is that it de-incentives the notions of hopes and dreams. Joe has spent his entire life aspiring to be a musician - to the point that taking a secure, full-time job as a music teacher is seen as a step back. The film goes to great lengths to stress how important Joe’s dreams - his purpose - are while simultaneously reveling in 22’s embrace of all the small moments in daily life. So it’s thematically contradictory when Joe realizes that his own dreams also have their own ordinariness to their cadence - and the film seemingly concludes that the repetitive grind of living a dream … is somehow less than the simple moments in everyday life. If ‘Soul’ was sincere in its embrace of life’s little pleasures, then it would have also impressed that beauty can be found in all of life’s moments - instead, it concludes that some small moments are more emotional and poignant than others.
Incredible, photorealistic animation and transcendental moments of existential insight are the only reason this review is net positive. It’s lazy plot structure and inconsistent themes very nearly dragged ‘Soul’ into the net negative territory.
No spoilers, but the ending is gutless, safe and frustrating. Just when 'Soul' appears to make a confident and decisive decision - it resorts to a lazy trick to come to a disappointing conclusion.
Final verdict: 'Soul' soars in its reflections on living life to its fullest - but shoehorns these wonderful themes into a lackluster, body swapping buddy comedy.
Score: 3/5
'Soul' premiering on Disney+ on Dec. 25. This animated feature is rated PG for thematic elements and some language and has a running time of 100 minutes.
