Big Hero 6 (2014) Directed by Don Hall & Chris Williams. Starring: Scott Adsit, Ryan Potter, Daniel Henney. IMDB says: “The special bond that develops between plus-sized inflatable robot Baymax, and prodigy Hiro Hamada, who team up with a group of friends to form a band of high-tech heroes.”
“How cool was that?! I mean, it’s scary, obviously, but how cool!”
Before I touch on Big Hero 6, the trend of showing an animated short before a Disney or Pixar film continued and prior to Big Hero 6 beginning, I was treated to a film called Feast. It’s a short film done in a cel shading style similar to The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, but with more texture. It begins with a small dog wandering the streets when he is presented with a french fry, then another, and then smash cut to the dog living in a loving home. At first I was scared. I was worried we were going to see the dog age over his many meals, eventually get sick, and then die. I prepared myself mentally for that. THANKFULLY, that doesn’t happen. Instead, it follows the dog’s owner through the point of view of the dog during his many, many meals. It’s actually really cool and very well done. We see the owner go through relationships, jobs, football parties, etc but it’s all through the eyes of whenever the dog is eating. It’s super imaginative, yet realistic, and definitely worth checking out.
Onto the film at hand…
When I saw an initial trailer for Big Hero 6, I wasn’t all that impressed. Thought it was cool, but I wasn’t sold. Then I saw a trailer that explained the plot a bit more and honestly, my interest was heightened when I realized comedian T.J. Miller was involved. It’s safe to say that I’m not the demographic for the film, nor is this a Marvel movie. It’s a Disney movie through and through, but it draws from a comic book series written for Marvel. After the movie was over I perused the internet to see how similar the film is to the source material and apparently it strays rather heavily. But I’m not here to talk differences; I’m here to talk Big Hero 6.
Big Hero 6 is the story of Hiro (voiced by Ryan Potter) a 13-year-old whiz kid who invents a new technology that falls into the hands of evil. With the help of Baymax (voiced by Scott Adsit) a healthcare assistant robot created by Hiro’s brother, and his friends, Hiro sets out to fight a Kabuki-masked evil. Who is this kabuki-masked evil doer? Can he be stopped? All of those questions and more unfold before our eyes in San Fransokyo, an imaginative yet realistic mish-mash of San Francisco and Tokyo.
The film is incredible to watch. There were times in the film I was blown away by how hyper real things looked. Even textures like jackets, hair, and water looked as if they had been super imposed into the film. It’s absolutely gorgeous to look at and in 3D it looks even better. Granted, nothing is jumping out at you, but the 3D is done well in adding depth to an already gorgeous view. The score is a combination of pop/rock you’d hear in an anime cartoon and a traditional orchestral score. As cool as that sounds, ultimately, it’s forgettable. It doesn’t hurt the film because you’re so busy being enthralled by the visuals.
The plot however, well, it’s alright. It follows the superhero origin story formula beat by predictable beat, but it’s fun. It’s a superhero movie for kids that delivers laughs and action for its intended audience; plain and simple. The cast is bolstered by the voice talents of Maya Rudolph, Alan Tudyk, Genesis Rodriguez, and Damon Wayans Jr, but the show is stolen anytime T.J. Miller’s character Fred is given screen time. To me, Fred is worth the price of admission alone.
It’s worth noting that while this is a movie featuring Marvel characters, this film is not part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. That being said, this film does have some Marvel fingerprints so be on the look out for a Stan Lee cameo and make sure you stick around until the end of the credits. You can check this out in theatres or wait for the rental, your call.
FTS SCORE: 73%