It turns out that even in non-toy form, Buzz Lightyear is kind of a jerk.
At least human Buzz Lightyear’s disposition matches up with the action figure we were first introduced to in 1995’s “Toy Story” who truly believed he was a Star Command space ranger. That Buzz was all self-assured bravado that bordered on delusion before he finally accepted that he was, in fact, a toy and began to lighten up a bit.
The Buzz Lightyear that we meet in Pixar’s “Lightyear,” out in theaters Friday, is an experienced space ranger with a similarly rigid worldview and inability to play well with others. There are definitely moments throughout the film where you have to marvel at Pixar’s boldness in making such a beloved character and this film’s ostensible hero so profoundly flawed.
As usual, in Pixar we trust. “Lightyear” soars thanks precisely to the journey Buzz takes to becoming a more well-rounded person and space ranger. While certain elements of his adventure resonate more than others, the whole thing is gorgeously rendered and features a group of supporting characters all worthy of the Lightyear legacy — especially Sox the robot cat, who immediately is an all-time great Pixar creation.
“Lightyear” is presented as the movie that Andy saw in 1995 that inspired him to buy a Buzz Lightyear toy in the first place. It’s unclear why the film’s marketing team spent most of this film’s promotional cycle refusing to clarify that premise. It literally took about a minute of the film’s 100-minute run time to satisfy the question that had been baffling cinephiles since this movie was first announced.
Anyway, “Lightyear” finds the titular character (who is voiced by Chris Evans) and a group of fellow Star Command employees marooned on an alien planet. Instead of taking the advice of friend and fellow space ranger Alisha Hawthorne (Uzo Aduba) and making a life for himself there, Buzz continues to do everything in his power to get himself and everyone else back home.
Things get complicated when Buzz’s Star Command colony is attacked by a hoard of invading robots that keep repeating the word “Zurg.” Buzz has to team up with an unlikely group of allies that includes the aforementioned Sox (Peter Sohn), Alisha’s granddaughter Izzy (Keke Palmer), ultra-spastic Mo (Taika Waititi) and aging convict Darby (Dale Soules) in order to save the day and fix some old mistakes.
This film is flat-out gorgeous whether the action is taking place in space, on the ground or anywhere in between. Pixar has gone full sci-fi before in movies like “WALL-E” and “The Incredibles,” but “Lightyear” takes it to a new level in terms of literally creating an entirely new planet full of visually compelling dangers and promise. Though not the funniest Pixar film, “Lightyear” does feature a few memorable sight gags that also speak to the level of care put into inventing this world.
Again, it was a risky decision to position this Buzz as so single-minded that he has become more of a hindrance than a help in completing the parameters of his mission. But those flaws served “Lightyear” well in terms of making Buzz feel like a fully formed character whose growth feels necessary and natural as it’s happening. Plus, it’s always fun to watch Buzz Lightyear go to infinity and beyond in service of his comrades.
The film stumbles with a few sci-fi elements that sort of make sense but don’t really hold up to much scrutiny. The revelation of Zurg’s motivations in particular may elicit eye rolls, especially fo folks familiar with certain genre tropes. This is a Pixar film aimed at kids though, and chances are they’ll care more about the exhilarating action set pieces than the slightly derivative sci-fi story beats.
It is admittedly a little jarring at first to hear Buzz Lightyear speak in a voice other than Tim Allen’s. However, Evans quickly proves that casting Captain America to play an intergalactic boy scout was a brilliant move on Pixar’s part. He’s basically just doing Steve Rogers in animated form, which works perfectly for Buzz as he grows into the kind of man and leader Cap himself would be proud to fight alongside of.
Aduba brings the right amount of bemused resignation to Alisha, who cares a lot about Buzz but doesn’t seem thrilled about his decision-making skills. Palmer’s Izzy is all wide-eyed exuberance as she does her best to live up to her grandmother’s legacy and Buzz’s expectations. Waititi and Soules both bring a lot of personality to their roles, though Waititi and the film do lay Mo’s well-meaning bumbling shtick on a tad thick.
Audience members of all ages will probably exit “Lightyear” singing the praises of Sox, who simply rules. That robot cat is hilarious, extremely useful and does cat things at the weirdest times. Sox never falls into the Disney sidekick trap of becoming more grating than endearing. In fact, he brings so much levity and sweetness to “Lightyear” that it might behoove Pixar to greenlight the inevitable “Sox” spinoff sooner rather than later.
Pixar managed to put out one of the more pleasant surprises in recent memory with “Lightyear.” It managed to overcome a confusing logline and some of its more high-concept ambitions to land as a mostly fun, beautiful adventure with zero fear of portraying its protagonist as a guy in need of some hard life lessons.
Mission status: job well done.
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‘LIGHTYEAR’
3 stars (out of 4)
MPAA rating: PG (for scenes of action/peril)
Running time: 1:45
How to watch: in theaters Friday
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