Hi-ho, Andrew the Hank here with yet another spectacular film review! Sorry for the delay; it’s been a month since I’ve seen the film! Busy, busy, busy with BA, Dominos, etc. So without further delay lets gets on with it; THE FOLLOWING CONTENT CONTAINS SCENES OF STRONG SPOILERS!
The 54th Walt Disney animation, BIG HERO 6! Hiro is a boy genius who doesn’t utilise his potential until his brother Tadashi introduces him to his ‘nerd’ school, his friends (Fred, Wasabi, Honey-Lemon and Go-go) and his latest creation; an inflatable health care robot called Baymax. Hiro is inspired and when he attempts to be accepted by the school, tragedy befalls and Tadashi dies in a fire at the school. Hiro discovers the fire wasn’t accidental as initially thought and teams up with Baymax and Tadashi’s friends to track down and capture the culprit. After using the same qualities found in all Disney films (family members dead/in deep distress, heroic sacrifices, humorous sidekicks, merchandising) and the same life lessons (having friends is good, love conquers, believe in yourself, keep moving forward), Big Hero 6 has become another Disney classic and even won the best animated film at the Oscars this year.
For this film it was the Saltcoats Premier Cinema again with my aunt and papa (yes, that’s what I call my granddad). We went for the 11:30 showing and the short film started exactly at that time, when we came in. Forgot the adverts were before the showing time; should have remembered after seeing Guardians of the Galaxy here. Anyway we came in as it started so grabbed the first seats we could find at the front in the centre. The seats were good, the picture quality was great and the sound was ok; it wasn’t louder than Odeon, but it was acceptable. I realised half way through the film that I didn’t see if my papa had his hearing aids in or on, so there was a possibility he couldn’t hear the film; he tends to stick them in and use them more as earplugs than hearing aids. It turns out he didn’t have them in, but it was loud enough for him to hear.
So yes as soon as we got into the cinema a short film called “Feast” was played before Big Hero 6; it is through the point-of-view of a gluttonous dog who watches the relationship between his owner and their girlfriend through the meals they share. I thought it was good (it won the award for best short film at the Oscars this year as well) but I wouldn’t say it was my favourite; Paperman is still my favourite short film at the moment. I liked the short’s use of colour with the unhealthy food and with the green coloured food representing the girlfriend, but felt it had similar uses of connotations as Paperman.
There is so much popularity with superhero films in recent years, and Disney creating a feature length animation with Marvel inspiration was a great idea. San Fransokoyo is brilliant and beautiful, combining the American superhero culture and the Japanese origins of the original Big Hero 6. It has the layout, hills, tram system and Golden Gate bridge of San Francisco with Japanese aesthetics to it (modern buildings, streets and neon lights; and traditional buildings, gardens and cherry blossom trees); it essentially looks like a futuristic version of San Francisco. The scene with Hiro and Baymax flying around the city was brilliant, but I feel that way of showing off the location and animation was nicked from How To Train Your Dragon. We wanted to see the Stan Lee clip after the credits but decided not to wait till the very end since no one else was there apart from the cleaner. I managed to find it on YouTube though (imagine it won’t be there for long) and thought it was great. Stan Lee’s caricature was brilliantly done and was a great addition; just wish we stayed to see it.
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I KNEW Krei wasn’t the villain! It was a twist within a twist for me; once the main characters start suspecting someone, you know immediately it won’t be them (this is Scooby Doo basics), but I was thinking the guy behind the mask was going to be Tadashi. In the end I was still surprised, but I was like Hiro and couldn’t get over Tadashi’s death; maybe I just watch too many Marvel films (except Spider-man films – everyone dies in them). And why was Baymax’s sacrifice so emotional?! Even while I was watching it I was thinking he’s a robot and Hiro could easily create another, yet I thought it was sad. Maybe it was the “I will always be with you” moment. The final scene/pose with all six of them was pretty epic too…but kinda nicked off the final scene from How To Train Your Dragon again. Overall I think Big Hero 6 is a great Disney animation and can be titled a classic unlike other Disney films; eh–Black Cauldron–hem! But here’s the big question: do I think it’s better than Frozen? It’s hard to say which is better because the films are two different styles/ genres of Disney animations; typical split into Disney’s take on classical fairy tales and original modern style stories. Both are brilliant in their own rights and can be liked by all ages and genders, but I would say Frozen is probably more popular because girly girls who love princesses will buy (or at least torment their parents endlessly until they buy) the tons of merchandising like dolls, toys, dresses and sing alongs. Whereas Big Hero 6 isn’t as musical; it’s more action packed and probably more for wee boys who imagine/aspire to be heroes and for Marvel/Disney geeks like me. It’s slightly sexist, but true – let it go!
The next in line with Disney animations is Zootropolis (Zootopia in America) set to release on 4th of March, 2016, about a modern city filled with animal inhabitants, and Lt. Judy Hopp (a rabbit) trying to prove herself in the police force by investigating and cracking a case; …strange but interesting. Apart from that, the next animated film related to Disney is Pixar’s Inside Out (releasing on 24th of July 2015). I am intrigued by the idea (personified emotions in people’s heads), but have no idea how Pixar will use it. I feel it would have more benefit as a short film, but I trust Pixar to do a good job as they haven’t done wrong with their films yet (with very slight exceptions for Cars 2 and Brave). I remember questioning Up when the teaser trailer first came out, but now it’s up there as one of the most popular Pixar, if not animated, films of all time. Will there be a sequel to Big Hero 6? There is a lot the Disney animators could do with this concept and I would love to see the characters and their world again (maybe other famous cities with Japanese aesthetics about them), but I feel like Disney and Marvel are already rolling in the money with their superhero films, and should maybe let DC Comics take the floor for a while. Big Hero 6 is absolutely fine on its own, and if they were to make a sequel it should be worth it and not just for cash. The two directors (Don Hall and Chris Williams) are still recovering from their hard work on this film and haven’t talked about a sequel, but in Don mentioned, “we love these characters, and the thought of working with them again some day definitely has its appeal.” Fist bump – balalalala!
In my last review I talked about video games (specifically Children of Men’s connection to The Last of Us) and I feel it’s appropriate in this review to include the video game franchise, Kingdom Hearts. A video game franchise that combines the characters from Square Enix games like Final Fantasy and The World Ends With You, and the characters and worlds of Disney films like Lion King, Nightmare Before Christmas, Beauty and the Beast, Pirates of the Caribbean and Tron. There is much speculation as to what worlds/characters will feature in the next game in the series, Kingdom Hearts 3, with the possible inclusions of Wreck-it Ralph, Frozen, or even the Pixar, Star Wars, or Avengers films, but I would like to talk about Big Hero 6 as a valid candidate. Big Hero 6 I think would be brilliant, not just for the modern and varied characters, enticing storyline or its beautiful visual appearance, but I think the exploration/side missions could be great in San Fransokyo! After completing the world’s main storyline, you could pair up with different members of Big Hero 6 and do heroic work through the streets of the city. To date none of the 3D Disney animation (except Chicken Little’s character as a summon) have featured in Kingdom Hearts, so will be interesting to see how they adapt to the game’s look. The two remastered games of Kingdom Hearts (1.5 HD ReMIX and 2.5 HD ReMIX) are available to buy for PlayStation 3. Kingdom Hearts 3 has been highly anticipated for many years and there still isn’t a release date, but I reckon it will release during the first half of 2017 (my opinion, not fact!).
Well that’s it for another review! Big Hero 6 was another triumph and has merited the title of “Classic Disney animation” for it’s beautiful visuals, interesting and action-packed storyline, great characters, and it’s typical Disney lessons. Feast was good, but hasn’t become my favourite short film. Kingdom Hearts is a great video game franchise; give it a try. And the Premier Cinema was fine; sound, seats and picture quality was good. Before I go, I shall leave a clue for my next review: there are no strings on me! And on that bomb-shell, I hope you are satisfied with your care.
FEAST – 7/10
BIG HERO 6 – 8/10
SALTCOATS PREMIER CINEMA – 7/10
KINGDOM HEARTS FRANCHISE – 8/10
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You totally read my mind with this review. Amazing.
Nice detailed review. I haven’t seen the movie yet. This review makes me want to see it. I love how you mentioned how Big Hero 6 would fit in Kingdom Hearts III.