Following on from the
seemingly franchise-driven slight misstep "Cars 2" (which, in Pixar's defence, it really had to make; I don't see how you could ignore the fact that toy shops were
still full of merchandise several years after the film all those toys were based
on last showed in a cinema), Pixar has, much to the relief of those of us who
have believed in Pixar for so long and spent nights lying awake worrying if, or
more likely when, the Disney takeover would work Disney's particular form of
anti-magic, gone back to what it does best: telling
stories.
"Brave" is
not merely the name of the film. "Brave" is also what Pixar was when
it decided to make the film. For "Brave" is an unusual thing: an
American mainstream film set in an imagined Scotland and with no
concession to American audiences. (It is very Scottish. I kept being reminded
of our first night in Glasgow in 1996 with Adrienne's aunt and uncle, when they
had invited a number of their friends around to meet us and also to celebrate
Adrienne's uncle's birthday: people talking to me in an almost aggressively friendly
manner, with me failing to understand more than the occasional word but having
a lovely time nonetheless.) Also, both of the main characters are female.
(There are, I think, leaving aside the servants, only two female characters, but the entire film is built around those two characters. It
is possible that their strength draws in part from their position in what is
very much a man's world.) And, to put a complete end to the "Cars 2"
complaints, there would appear to be no marketing, spin-off or sequel
opportunities with this one. It simply is what it is.
Is "Brave"
an act of penance, then? Presumably not, as Pixar's usual working method would
suggest that the film would have been well into production before "Cars
2" hit the screen. Or, if it is an act of penance, then it must have
been pre-emptive penance, if such a thing is possible. What it might be,
though, is John Lasseter's tip of the hat to Hayao Miyazaki. We know that
Lasseter was a driving force behind bringing the Studio Ghibli masterpieces to
English-speaking audiences. There is much of Miyazaki in this film: the painting-like
backgrounds, especially on the long-range landscape shots; the strong young
female lead; the mystical elements (the forest sprites in "Brave" echo
the dust mites in "Totoro", for example); the physical appearance of
the witch, who is very much of a type with some of Miyazaki's elderly grannies and crones.
(The witch, and her cottage, I am now thinking, must also be something of an
homage to the witches that permeated the classic early Disney movies. Well, "duh".)
If you asked me to
come up with a pithy mathematical calculation to sum up this film, then, it would
probably be "Studio Ghibli meets 'The Secret of Roan Inish'"
(a film, Adrienne and I discovered when comparing notes
afterwards, that we had both been put in mind of): predominantly whimsical and mystical (the "Roan Inish" connection), but with just
the right amount of mindless violence, suspense, and the customary race against time just before the
finish.
Somehow I haven't managed to see any reviews or box office news, so I have no
idea how "Brave" is playing out in the wider world. We couldn't convince the boys to
see it, on account of word having gone around that it is a "girls'
film" (which it most definitely isn't; or at least not only; well, okay, it does contain scenes of a girl riding a horse, but it's clearly not "Saddle Club"). But I am
working on them, slowly, in the hope that I might get to see it again on the
big screen rather than just on DVD later on. (Did I forget to mention that the animation, even
by Pixar's lofty standards, is frequently how-did-they-do-that stunning?)
(Also, and again in
keeping with Pixar tradition, we were treated to a lovely stand-alone short
film as a curtain raiser for the main event. The only thing missing, which Pixar used to do -- although I can't remember if this was always the case -- was a trailer for
whatever next year's Pixar film turns out to be. (It may or may not be a sequel
to "Monsters, Inc". Another Pixar sequel? Well, the two wonderful "Toy Story" sequels suggest that
there is no cause for alarm. Let's give Pixar the benefit of the doubt for now
and work on the assumption that "Cars 2" was just an off year. Oh, and
go and see "Brave", even if you can't find any kids to drag along
with you. I promise you will like it.))
