Review: Onward (Special Viewing)

Hello, fellow Disnerds! Last weekend we watched Onward, the latest film released by Pixar Animation. We both enjoyed it and wanted to share some of our thoughts with all of you. Don’t worry—this review will be spoiler-free, so if you haven’t seen it you’re safe! Now, “onward” to the review!

A Quick Review of Onward

Megan’s Thoughts

It’s a Pixar movie, so by now I go in expecting it will make me cry. Onward does not disappoint - you’ll want to have your tissues handy! (It’s not as gut-wrenching as Up—I found it more heartwarming.) I will say, though, without giving anything away, that I went in expecting one element of the story to make me cry, but I was crying for a completely different reason by the end.
It didn’t pass the Bechdel test… This is something Pixar still struggles with (the majority of their movies so far feature male protagonists and male stories). While there are two female characters that have their own buddy-adventure sub-plot in this movie, their conversation is always about the male characters.
The character development of Ian and Barley is so well done. I really loved watching their transformation through the course of their quest. The film doesn’t necessarily do anything spectacular to break the “hero’s journey” mold, but it does give us a great scene where a “tough guy” can be honest and vulnerable in a conversation with another guy.

Kevin’s Thoughts

The first third or so of the film moves slowly, but that’s because we already saw these scenes in the trailer(s). We knew how the first part of the story would more or less play out, so things didn’t really get interesting until the characters go on their quest. Once it gets moving though, the adventure is well worth the watch.
In true Pixar fashion, Onward tugs at the heartstrings. I, too, was surprised at how they handled the ending, but what they did was really the best route to take. It made more sense from a narrative perspective and serves as a heart-warming resolution for both the main characters.
Tom Holland (voice of Ian) and Chris Pratt (voice of Barley) have great chemistry with each other. If you’ve seen Avengers: Infinity War you’ll probably know what I mean; they didn’t have the same kind of relationship in that movie but I think they foreshadowed the sort of dynamic that is present in Onward. The brotherly relationship between the two characters is very believable and keeps pushing the movie forward.