McCoy on Movies: Onward

THE BACK STORY: Once upon a time, the world in which elf brothers Barley (Chris Pratt) and Ian (Tom Holland) Lightfoot now live was full of magic. But then innovation in the form of technology took over, leaving magic to fade into the point of almost existing as nothing more than folklore. And for Barley, that’s something he misses greatly as magic and lore is his favorite thing in the world. In contrast, Ian doesn’t really know what his favorite thing yet as his shy, awkward nature often keeps him from socializing – which is a problem since he’s about to celebrate his 16th birthday. His mom Laurel (Julia Louis-Dreyfuss) just wants the best for both her sons, even though there’s something she knows that Ian misses his father Wilden something awful. Passing away during Ian’s youth, Wilden is an enigma to his youngest son who wishes he could just get the chance to spend some quality time with him.


Then, Laurel reveals a gift from Wilden that changes everything … If they are able to complete a magical quest like the ones Barley has been training for his entire life. Now, it’s up to both boys – despite all the colorful characters they’ll meet along the way – to make their wish to see their father again come true.


And to do so, they must move onward …

THE REVIEW: At this point, Disney•Pixar has pretty much perfected the way it makes movies to a science: (1) Insert cutesy scenario with characters that at first seem nice and whimsical; (2) Add emotional depth to the story by making the most non-human characters as human as possible with a variety of emotional struggles; (3) Add enough depth to make them relatable to the struggles of young people while at the same time making them palatable to adults – or in the case of Up, reverse the formula and (4) Bring the story to an emotional, action-packed climax with the occasional twist, turn and dose of comedy that everyone has come to love.Onward, which begins with a more serious, straightforward tone than many Disney•Pixar ventures, does all four of these things to deliver the quality entertainment for three decades-plus.

Adolescence is a popular movie staple for a simple reason: It’s a time period that so many struggle with yet shapes us all in so many long-lasting yet unique to us all ways that you can seemingly never run out of means to do so. With Onward, Disney•Pixar explores sibling rivalry, the path to self-discovery and the importance of a parental figure/mentor in a child’s life – all with the humor, conflict and heartwarming resolution audiences love. Holland, essentially channeling all of his Peter Parker energy into Ian, delivers a solid performance that gets to the heart of his character’s issues, which makes his eventual outcome all the more worthwhile. Pratt for his part plays a great second banana to steer Holland’s character through his journey. Likewise, Waithe adds a much-needed dose of playful enthusiasm as The Manticore, a legendary creature who has fallen victim to the convenience of the modern world and director Dan Scanlon’s Weekend at Bernie’s-like usage of the boys’ father.

It all adds up to an entertaining package which should inspire audience to march onward to the theater to enjoy another (near) perfect Disney•Pixar entertaining, family-friendly adventure.

OVERALL RATING (OUT OF FOUR POSSIBLE BUCKETS OF POPCORN):