Review: Onward

 In a fantasy world that abandoned magic centuries ago (it turned out modern conveniences were just too convenient), teenage elf Ian Lightfoot (Tom Holland) is a quiet introvert who really misses the (dead) dad he never knew. Pixar sadness ahead!

Meanwhile, big brother Barley (Chris Pratt, channeling Jack Black in his prime) is a brash extrovert obsessed with the magical past who drives around in a beat up van named Genevieve and chains himself to old ruins in between role-playing sessions. If you were wondering whether Frozen made animated siblings cool, here's the proof (only this time, for boys!) (actually, this really is very much for boys).

It turns out Barley wasn't the only magic-obsessed nerd in the family: on Ian’s sixteenth birthday a spell set up by their dead dad gives the brothers the chance to have him back for one full day. But when it goes wrong and only restores his bottom half, the pair have to sneak off on a quest (okay, it’s a road trip in Barley’s crap van) to restore the half they really need to meet. 

It's easy to see the appeal of the central concept: what if Dungeons & Dragons was (historically) real? But like a lot of Pixar's recent projects, this feels over-thought, with multiple layers added that muddy rather than clarify the premise's core appeal. 

Here that'd be "a young man insecure of his place in the world goes on a quest that helps him figure out that place". This then also turns out to be about his relationship with his brother (and vice versa), plus a side serve of "hey, why did we ever give up on magic", a bunch of "my dad is a walking butt" comedy, and the brothers' mum (voiced by Julia Louis-Dryfuss) racing to save them from a curse they're about to stumble into unawares.

None of this detracts from the film exactly, but there's a a lack of balance throughout that dulls the story's focus. The quest itself is intentionally generic - the thrill is meant to be that they're living out a fantasy for real - but it comes across as slightly half-hearted on screen, a checklist of stages the characters have to go through. Possibly the fussiness around it comes from a realisation that the central story is weak, but it doesn't solve the problem.

The brothers' relationship is the strongest part of the film, but pretty much all the relationships are well-rounded, with characters constantly refusing to fall back on dramatic cliches. Even when people don't get along, they consistently like each other; the big dramatic moment between the brothers is (relatively) quickly smoothed over because they're brothers who get along - and realistically there's never going to be a shock reveal that instantly tears them apart.

Initially Onward threatens to be yet another Disney feature about "the chosen one". The prologue explains that magic died out because it was hard to master, but Ian turns out to be a natural at it. It could almost be a superhero origin story; fortunately this is drawing its inspiration from a very different tradition.

Fantasy adventure, especially in its Lord of the Rings-inspired Dungeons & Dragons form, is largely about teamwork. Your character can be the best fighter or magic user or thief there is, but you're still going to need to join a party made up of other characters to get things done.

So while Ian is the only character here who fits into a traditional D&D role (Barley might have been a fighter in an earlier draft but here he's just a metal dude; their mum is just a protective mum), the idea of a team (or party) sharing the focus runs throughout the film. 

It's about a community where everyone wins when they work together; some stories are more relevant in 2020 than others.

- Anthony Morris