Cars (2006) Movie Information:

Cars (2006) Directed by: John Lasseter Cars (2006) Written by: John Lasseter Cars (2006) Cast: George Carlin, R. Lee Emery, Bonnie Hunt, Tom Magliozzi, Cheech Marin, Paul Newman, Richard Petty, John Ratzenberger, Larry the Cable Guy, Dan Whitney, Owen Wilson

Cars (2006) U.S. Distributor: Walt Disney Pictures Cars (2006) U.K. Distributor: Buena Vista

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Cars (2006) Synopsis:

After taking moviegoers magically into the realm of toys, bugs, monsters, fish, and superheroes, the masterful storytellers and technical wizards at Pixar Animation Studios (“The Incredibles,” “Finding Nemo,” “Monsters, Inc.”), and Academy Award®-winning director John Lasseter (“Toy Story,” “Toy Story 2,” “A Bug’s Life”), hit the road with a fast-paced comedy adventure set inside the world of cars. Lightning McQueen (voice of OWEN WILSON), a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed, discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line, when he finds himself unexpectedly detoured in the sleepy Route 66 town of Radiator Springs. On route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California to compete against two seasoned pros, McQueen gets to know the town’s offbeat characters –including Sally (a snazzy 2002 Porsche voiced by BONNIE HUNT), Doc Hudson (a 1951 Hudson Hornet with a mysterious past, voiced by PAUL NEWMAN), and Mater (a rusty but trusty tow truck voiced by LARRY THE CABLE GUY) – who help him realize that there are more important things than trophies, fame and sponsorship. The all-star vocal cast also includes free-wheeling performances by racing legend Richard Petty and. Fueled with plenty of humor, action, heartfelt drama, and amazing new technical feats, CARS is a high octane delight for moviegoers of all ages.

Cars (2006) Movie Review:

Pixar continues its unbroken run of hugely entertaining films with this adventure about an America populated only with cars. The animation is jaw-droppingly gorgeous, and the characters are wonderful. But it's kind of odd, really.

Lightning McQueen (Wilson) is a rising star, a sparky red racecar that gets lost on Route 66 on the way to the Piston Cup in California. He gets stuck in Radiator Springs, where he has a run-in with the judge Doc (Newman), gets help from tow truck Mater (Larry) and falls for sexy Porche Sally (Hunt). All of these cars, and others in the dusty, bypassed little town, have surprises in store for the arrogant speedster. And maybe he can teach them a thing or two as well.

Yes, it's basically a wistful ode to the olden days when people took time to enjoy their journeys and help each other out, when there were small roads that rolled with the land rather than interstates that cut through it. The plot is extremely predictable; even the lessons are obvious from the beginning. And then there's the problem of the cars themselves--the entire premise never quite makes sense and feels somehow, well, wrong.

So it helps hugely that the script is sweet and very funny, with extremely vivid characters voiced charmingly by the skilled cast. And the animation is spectacular. The big set pieces are fantastic (the opening crash is astonishing), and the landscape design is magnificent, cleverly working in car details where you least expect them. This attention to detail fills the film, in the colourful images and in the characters themselves.

And it's through this depth of care in the production that the film wins us over and helps us forget how very strange this automotive world is. Witty touches leap off the screen everywhere, and Randy Newman's score includes a number of superb Western tunes. The plot is engaging and brilliantly structured to build to a terrific pay-off. And of course terrific comedy bits running through the closing credits send us chuckling out of the cinema.

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Cars (2006) review written by: Rich Cline