A joyous and exuberant celebration of life, youth, friendship and la dolce vita. Simply executed and beautifully rendered by director Enrico Casarosa, this was a top tier Pixar animation. It may not have the big and ambitious thematic scopes like Inside Out or Soul, but it was highly reminiscent of classic, touching, Pixar like Toy Story and Coco.
The closest comparison to Luca would be last year's Onward. But where the latter faltered, the former shone. The chemistry and relationship between the two leads felt genuine and sincere. The joys and highs were palpable, and the lows and pains were well-earned. The town and the fantastical elements were gorgeously designed and created, and the inventive use of mixed animation style - a bit Soul-ish and Wolfwalkers-ish - was delightful and exciting. Even the score, by first time Pixar collaborator Dan Romer, was a lot more memorable than the ones by the Danna brothers for Onward.
In all, Luca just boldly embodied the carefree, joie de vivre - pardon my French - of its Italian setting. Everything felt looser, easier and less constrained by structure, and that translated beautifully to the screen, and, in turn, to the audience.
Jacob Tremblay and Jack Dylan Grazer voiced our two intrepid young leads, and they were outstanding. Tremblay effortlessly captured the wide-eyed, innocent, naïveté that propelled his journey and allowed his sincerity and honesty to emanate through. Whereas Grazer, slightly older, had a rebellious edge to his voice that belied a need for acceptance and bonding relationships. It was not hard to imagine that their friendship was true.
Other standouts in the voice cast included Maya Rudolph and Sascha Baron Cohen. And Emma Berman as their female third-lead had an easy, infectious chemistry with our two boys. The code switching and interspersing of Italian throughout was a fun touch and will sure to get lots of kids - and adults - repeating them.
And let's give it up to Giuseppe, Mona Lisa and friends, and Machiavelli! LOL.
As mentioned, Romer's score was a standout. The Italian-Mediterranean tinged score was very fitting and it not only propelled the narrative but enveloped the audience into the environs. Each musical interlude was a highlight, and perhaps all that was lacking was a big, musical, sing-along number.
A pity that Disney decided not to put this up theatrically. Hopefully many people can watch this really good, tears-inducing, fun and funny, top notched animation! Stay till the end for a hilarious post-credits scene!
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