I am experiencing a period of writer’s block. 

Eight months into my final Master’s project, I am unsure I know how to write anymore! I’m not worried. After all, what is a love of writing, if not a hatred for writing? This is a part of the process.

Meanwhile, I am still a big fan of movies. I’m a big fan of Pixar™️. In fact, I’m such a big fan of Pixar that I’m in The Incredibles! That photo above is totally real – just a little fun fact for you. 

This year I decided to rewatch all of the Pixar films, and for each one, I wrote a fairly lengthy review on my Letterboxd account. I wrote so much in fact, that all together, I wrote 10,000 words! Whoops. I finished the rewatch two months ago and decided that I wanted to write something shorter for okayjamedotcom. I wrote a pretty good first draft, but then, much like my Master’s project, I got stuck. Writing is hard, but re-drafting? That is a whole new creature. 

Last night, I wrote a speech for my brother’s 21st birthday. As I did, I was suddenly struck by how much I enjoy writing. I hadn’t felt that feeling for quite some time, and I thought wow, it is time to strike while the iron is hot. Use that energy to make progress on my Master’s project? No, no. I’m here to finish the Pixar piece. Shout out to my supervisors. 

I’m looking forward to getting back to writing things for okayjamedotcom, and have big plans for next year. But until then, sit back and enjoy my silly little thoughts on these silly little movies! My real, full thoughts can be found on my Letterboxd account. If you’re curious to know exactly why I love Cars 3 so much, you’re going to have to look there. 

2/5 Stars – thank god there is only one movie in this tier. 

#28: Lightyear

You remember COVID? Remember lockdown? Remember how we all suddenly had so much time on our hands? And we picked up new hobbies? Remember how great it felt to create something? We all had something. 

And now, do you remember cleaning your room the other day? When you stumbled across that piece of art that you hadn’t touched since COVID? And you looked at it and you thought wow! This sucks!

This is that, for Pixar – their embarrassing lockdown art. It is boring, convoluted, and Buzz’s big chin is the freakiest thing Pixar have ever put to screen. 

2.5/5 Stars – I think these movies are bad! Sorry! 

#27: The Good Dinosaur

One thing I hate about Shrek Forever After is that the plot revolves around the fact that Shrek hates his family, he lashes out at them, openly resents them, and longs for the days when he was alone. This all gets resolved, but I just can not get behind any narrative in a children’s film where a parent acts so aggressively against their children. Conflict between a child and parent, sure! Those are the best movies ever made. Conflict between an angry parent and a child who doesn’t know any better? That is gross. 

So anyway, I was glad when the dad died in this movie, he was stupid and rude to little Arlo. The Good Dinosaur? More like The Bad Movie. 

Coming back to revise this, I had a big laugh at the last line. I think that speaks volumes to where my writing brain is at currently. 

#26: Toy Story 4 

I wrote over 1200 words in my review for this movie on my Letterboxd. I have such a passionate dislike for it. I hate what it does to the characters that we love. I hate what it does with the series’ iconic score. I hate that I find myself bored watching a Toy Story movie. That’s all I had to say! But no, I blabbed on for 1200 words and my friends won’t stop bullying me. Can’t even have an opinion anymore because of woke. 

#25: A Bug’s Life

I have never liked this movie because I hate bugs and I also really hate bugs! This placement is probably unfair, but I just can’t with bugs. I also hate the main character, Flik – Not just because he is an ant and my flat has a major ant problem at the moment, but because he is an ant and ants are bugs and I hate bugs! Wait, are ants bugs? Should this be called An Insect’s Life? Just something to think about. 

Great soundtrack though. 

3/5 Stars – okay I like these movies now 

#24: Cars 2

I gave this movie three stars, the same rating that I gave The Godfather, Oppenheimer, and Dune. Shout out to my minor in Cinema Studies. 

I am so glad this movie exists. How did they come up with this as a sequel to the first? Like how? What? It is completely incomprehensible and I love it. Nothing made me laugh more than the little evil car saying “Lightning McQueen must be killed!” Someone wrote that line. I’m still laughing. 

The story defies all logic and I love it for that. I spent the entire movie thinking GOD, Mater is so stupid. and then they hit us with the scene where he is told that he is stupid and it’s genuinely so sad. But then in the very next scene, he returns to being unbelievably stupid and it is SO frustrating to watch. What is wrong with this stupid movie? Who wanted this? I had a blast! 

#23: Finding Dory

I was so excited to see this in the theatre for the first time, excitement that was quickly dampened as I sat in front of an ex-teacher. They were so unbelievably loud throughout the whole movie and it drove me mad. This movie has its funny moments for sure, but not every line! It felt like there was an alien behind me who couldn’t quite figure out when to laugh, so they just laughed at everything.

Little Dory is so so so so so so so cute and that moment with her parent and the shells is so so so so so so so sick and twisted. But I don’t think this movie will ever recover from my unfortunate initial experience. 

3.5/5 stars – I think these movies are great

#22: Onward

This movie is a lot of fun, and while not incredibly innovative by Pixar’s standards, it absolutely gets too much hate. 

Speaking of hate, let’s talk about Chris Pratt! 

I don’t like his performance here, nor do I love his performance as Mario, and I haven’t seen it yet but I can’t imagine he’s great as Garfield. He is good as Emmet in The Lego Movie though! You know, that character whose whole thing is that he is one note, bland, nothing special and so on. 

Not to pin all of that on Chris’ performance, because I also really dislike his character! He has the same issue as Tow Mater. They’re a character who is so obviously wrong and unhelpful for the majority of the first half of the movie. And sure, they eventually help out in a surprising way – but when they’re so unlikable for so long, I can’t root for them. To me, that is not cinema. 

But the ending of this movie is so sweet, and there are so many fun moments, and there isn’t even a villain! There is a lot to love here, maybe I should have written about it. 

#21: Brave

How did they animate her hair? How’d they do that? Are you guys seeing this? It looks incredible. Also, did you know that cinema was invented the moment Merida shot her third arrow into that target? That was when they officially coined the term cinema. Look it up.

I really like this movie, and I think that if it had an extra ten or so minutes to develop a few things between Merida and her mother I would love it. The change of heart that brings the movie home just feels a tad rushed, so I don’t really buy it. But still! The ending is lovely, made me tear up. 

I’m not sure if I would be brave (haha) enough to live in a world where Scottish people actually exist! 

#20: Cars 3

If the Cars franchise has a million fans, then I am one of them. If the Cars franchise has ten fans, then I am one of them. If the Cars franchise has only one fan then that is me. If the Cars franchise has no fans, then that means I am no longer on earth. If the world is against the Cars franchise, then I am against the world.

#19: Inside Out 2

Is anyone else completely baffled as to how this movie is the highest-grossing animated film of all time? Like it’s good! It’s great even! But how is it so popular? What combination of things led to this film’s success? Is it because of Ayo Edebiri? That has to be it. 

My favourite thing about this movie is the focus on sport. I don’t know if I have ever seen such a great depiction of how it feels to participate in a sport that you love. The final moments where Joy is drawn to the console as Riley moves on the ice, it is unreal! That is what living is all about and I’m so glad Pixar made Riley a sports jock. Great to see some jock representation on the big screen. 

#18: Turning Red

You know, it is okay to be cringe. In fact, we have all, at some point in our lives, been cringe! Especially when we were kids! I feel like this movie gets hate because its characters are cringe. I’m sure a huge percentage of this hate stems from men who are upset because it is a group of young girls who lead the film and hide their misogyny by saying the characters are poorly written. But even for those who are genuinely put off by the cringe moments in this movie, you have got to wake up! This is who we are! We are cringe! This is real! It’s risky filmmaking, but it’s kind of beautiful. 

4/5 Stars – I kinda love these movies! 

#17: Elemental

I have to rant about AI for a second. We all know how bad AI art is. We all know chat GPT can’t write to save its life. And we all know that despite Hollywood’s best efforts, they’ll never, EVER, be able to make great art using AI. 

I don’t know how you can watch this movie, see the dedication at the end of the film, and go and write a review on Letterboxd about how this movie was written with chat GPT. It is so unbelievably disrespectful to the filmmakers, to the hundreds of artists and production crew and animators, and ultimately disrespectful to the families who inspired the story. We are heading into some dark times if we are going to start calling films that we don’t connect with “AI generated.”

I love this movie. It is so cute, so colourful, so full of heart – the haters are wrong! Fight me! 

#16: Incredibles 2

I was really disappointed to not be asked to return to reprise my role in this film. I thought it was us, you know. I thought we were a team. Look at how incredible (get it?) we looked together on the big screen. (see image above). I still keep in touch with Dash, and every now and then Helen asks if I can babysit Jack-Jack, but I don’t know, that kid is cute but there is something up with him, you know? I hope they have me back for the next one. 

#15: Toy Story 3

I vividly remember going to see this at the theatre because it was the first time I had gone to the movies without my parents. That’s a real core memory, a brand new Toy Story on the big screen. You gotta be kidding me! 

I lost my mind over the opening scene, it is still so epic. All of the callbacks to the first film are so tasteful, it’s kind of beautiful. And then there’s the rubbish scene! Are you kidding?! What an insane moment, nine-year-old James was absolutely blown away. I still kinda am! And then the final scene is just. It’s just like. It’s so. It is. Wow. The perfect ending to the trilogy and I’m so glad they didn’t make any more after this. 

#14: Soul

This movie somehow feels like the biggest risk Pixar have ever taken, while simultaneously being unbelievably safe. Can I explain what I mean by that? Probably not. I am stupid. But I like it! And that is all I have to say I think (I’m going to have a nap). 

#13: Up

There are a million things to love about Up. Here’s one of the moments I love.

“My dad made it sound so easy. He’s really good at camping, and how to make fire from rocks and stuff. He used to come to all my Sweatlodge meetings. And afterwards we’d go get ice cream at Fentons. I always get chocolate and he gets butter-brickle. Then we’d sit on this one curb, right outside, and I’ll count all the blue cars and he counts all the red ones, and whoever gets the most, wins. 

I like that curb. 

That might sound boring, but I think the boring stuff is the stuff I remember the most.”

Beautiful. 

#12: Cars

Cars isn’t only one of Pixar’s best movies, it is one of the greatest films of all time. It pains me beyond belief when people cite this movie as the one where Pixar began their decline. Maybe it was just the moment your brain began to decline from enjoying cinema??? Sort yourself out. 

The opening scene is genuinely enthralling, it gets me every time and I still to this day watch it and think “Well hey, maybe this time his tyres will be fine this time. Maybe he’ll win anyway.” But no, he pokes out his tongue and it’s a three-way tie. What a race!

Also the soundtrack to this movie? Life is a Highway? Greatest song of all time? James Taylor singing about the town? And it’s so sweet and sad? You’re crazy. I’m crazy. And God, the scene where they fix the lights and cruise around town, it’s so beautiful. Just a bunch of friends taking life slowly, spending time with one another and appreciating the little things. You have to be a fool to think this movie has no heart.

4.5/5 Stars – These are the best movies of all time 

#11: Luca

I love this movie so much. The joy and whimsy here is so infectious. There is like a giggle a minute. Luca is the cutest kid on land and sea and his discovery of the world is so freaking beautiful to watch. This movie has the lowest stakes ever and I love it for that. What a breath of fresh air. They’re just little guys who want a Vespa. 

I love the colours and the greens and the blues and I love the look of the water and I love the designs of literally every character and I love their scales and I love the cat and I love the training montage and I love that scene where they go fishing and I love the parents throwing the kids into the water and I love the grandma and I love-hate that stupid rival he’s so silly and I love the lighting and I love the score and I love the ending. bah.

I think this movie is flawless. 9/10.

#10: Monsters University

Possibly the only hot take I have on this list – Monsters University is a top ten Pixar film. 

It shouldn’t be that hot of a take, this movie is amazing. It looks unreal, it sounds so good, the new characters rock, and it has a Bill Hader cameo – what more could you want?

I just love the message here, you can follow your dreams, but sometimes they won’t work out. And that is okay. Lean into what works for you, lean into your strengths. There is happiness to be found, life to live! Monsters University! That scene where Mike and Sully are looking out onto the lake? And it is all desaturated? It is an unreal piece of filmmaking. How did they do that?

#9: Toy Story

Oh hey! One of the most significant achievements in cinema of all time! Cool. 

Thirty years on, this continues to surpass 90% of the 3D animated films produced today. The story is so tight, the score is beyond iconic and the characters are the best Pixar (or dare I say, anyone?) have ever created (actually, second to the Parr’s, but it’s close). 

I have a prediction for this movie. One day, in the near future, Pixar is going to release a remaster of this movie. Toy Story with the visuals of Toy Story 4. It would be a huge production, essentially re-animating and designing the entire movie. But it would be a guaranteed hit. It has absolutely crossed their mind, I bet you a billion dollars. A trillion dollars!

#8: Inside Out

This movie is so special. Its cultural impact can not be understated. The way they managed to explain all of these internal processes in a visually striking way that stupid children can also understand is one thing, but the way they were able to do that in a way that stupid adults can also understand? That is something else. 

How many movies leave you thinking deeply about yourself? There are movies that make you think, sure. But this movie? It makes you think about who you are, how you are who you are, and what the core memories are inside of you that make you, you. Isn’t that crazy? Everyone who watched this movie left the theatre reflecting on their humanity, and how they became the person they are. Isn’t that just so beautiful?

But no, people go ahead and complain about Joy being annoying. Are you stupid? Of course she is! That is kind of the entire point! Joy needs to step aside sometimes! She had to be there! She had to be loud! Media literacy is dead! 

Bill Hader is so great in this I love his voice. Also, everyone else is so good in this! Perfect cast, how’d they do that? 

5/5 Stars BABY – And these are even better than the best of all time! 

#7: Coco

Movies like Coco make me pause and think about how cinema is kind of a miracle. How does this happen? How can a team of people come together and make something so beautiful? It is just unreal. 

I think this is the greatest world Pixar has ever designed, the colour is stunning, the details are so meticulous, and the vibes are off the charts. It is also so, so funny. 

And so, so sad!

Why’d they have to make this movie so messed up? That final scene is just unreal. It’s a freaking masterclass in screenwriting. The little moments in that scene, the little finger twitches when he starts singing, the way her eyes light up, the way she talks about her father – it is cinema. 

#6: Toy Story 2

Not only is this the best of the three Toy Story films, but this is the best sequel of any movie period. The Godfather Part II who? (I haven’t seen it, and why would I?). 

A trap that many animated sequels fall into (including the latest Toy Story) is the unthoughtful reset of characters. Characters regress from the previous film, so that they can learn the same lesions following the same arc. Look at Ice Age, a film series I’m sure all of you have seen. Every movie is the same, Ray Romano Mammoth is miserable, but throughout the film, he becomes less miserable, but then the next movie, he’s back to grump. 

Toy Story 2 is fresh. It logically develops the characters, telling a story that builds on the world rather than re-treading the same lessons. I love it! And it does this by introducing the greatest characters of all time! Bullseye is cute as hell, Buster is cute as hell, second Buzz is cute as hell. And of course, Jessie, who is the reason this movie works. Her song is peak sad Pixar.

I love this movie! 

#5: Finding Nemo

It had been a minute since I had watched Finding Nemo, and I thought there was a chance it was no longer one of my favourites. I just had a feeling, you know? Maybe the reason I hadn’t re-watched this in forever is that it wasn’t ever all that great. 

But no! That was a silly feeling. This movie is unbelievable. The beginning is perhaps one of the most messed up things anyone has ever created? It is sadder than the beginning of Up. Yeah, I said it! 

What a journey. I cried real human tears. The fact that after everything Marlin goes through, he lets Nemo go so he can save the fish in the net. I’ve never really been at an age where I truly felt the weight of that decision. When I was younger and watched it I was like “Yeah! Of course, you let him go because he can save them!” Now it’s like “Wow, you’ve both grown so much and I am destroyed.” 

They don’t make ‘em like this anymore. Hot Willem Dafoe fish.

#4: Monsters, Inc.

I think I may have watched Monsters, Inc. more than any movie ever (besides number one, perhaps). I’ve seen this over a billion, 200, a trillion, 200 billion times.

This is possibly the greatest idea for a movie of all time. It is so genius and I am upset that I didn’t think of it. The characters are amazing and their adventure is so believable and funny and emotional and perfect and how did they make this? And that soundtrack? That is one incredible soundtrack right there. 

Mike is genuinely the greatest friend in the world. Rebuilding the door for Sully, that’s true friendship. Presents are cool and all, but when someone puts hours into a project for you, that’s true love. Name a more iconic duo. 

#3: Wall-E

This movie is driven by WALL-E’s deep yearning to hold hands with someone. Sick. And. Twisted. 

The first 40 minutes of this movie are flawless. So flawless that I’d go as far as to say that it is the best 40 minutes of any Pixar movie, hell, maybe any movie ever? It’s absurd. WALL-E is freaking living life. He’s collecting trinkets. He’s watching cinema. He’s falling in love. The way he shows EVE around his home? And the way he is so full of wonder, and he wants nothing more than to share that with someone else? Then he jumps on a rocketship for her? And even in space, he taps on the glass, says “Eveah!” and points to the stars? It’s the most beautiful thing anyone has ever made. Don’t get me started on their dance. 

This is a perfect movie. 

#2: Ratatouille

Philip Bradley Bird is God’s gift to cinema. How this movie was not nominated for Best Picture is beyond me. Have you even seen this movie? It is messed up how good it is. 

It must be every screenwriter’s dream to write something half as genius as this. Brad said I want to make a movie about art, what it means to have a passion for something, how a great artist can come from anywhere – and then he said I’m gonna show this from the perspective of a rat. Then Pixar let him cook, and he created the greatest piece of cinema of all time. 

Remy. 

#1 : The Incredibles

My favourite movie of all time, forever and always. At this point, I don’t even know how to write about it. 

I’ve been able to watch this movie at least once a year for the past twenty years or so (or maybe once a week in my younger years), and each time I do, I appreciate something new. This truly is a film for all ages. As you grow and learn about the world, this film will offer you something new. I can only assume that more small moments will become even more impactful as I continue to grow. Isn’t that special? 

The characters are so thoughtfully constructed. The villain is now the blueprint. The action is endlessly entertaining. The jokes are hilarious. The soundtrack is absurd. The visuals are timeless. The screenplay is flawless. It is perfect. I love cinema. The end. 

Bonus rant! 

I really loved re-watching these films. I thought many of them wouldn’t hit as hard as they did when I was younger, but to be honest, I think I enjoyed almost all of them more than I ever had. That is pretty special. Pixar is pretty special. And you are special! Hehe. 

Before I go, I want to touch on this quote from this article (behind a paywall). 

After Lightyear lost millions of dollars in 2022 and Elemental had Pixar’s worst-ever opening-weekend performance the following year, “there was a real and intense period of self-scrutiny and feeling like we messed up in some way,” Docter says. Executives hosted postmortems to determine how to revitalize the studio, he recalls. They arrived at mentoring Pixar’s upcoming directors to focus less on autobiographical tales—Luca had been inspired by its director’s childhood in Italy; Turning Red, by its director’s relationship with her mother; and Elemental (which did gain some momentum overseas and online), by its director’s immigrant family. Pixar would instead develop concepts with clear mass appeal, many of which—in the case of sequels and spinoffs—had already been proven.

The studio’s movies should be less a pursuit of any director’s catharsis and instead speak to a commonality of experience, Docter says. “I don’t think we can ever let ourselves off the hook of making sure that we deliver the best possible and most relatable films.”

There really isn’t anything I need to say here. This is absurd, stupid, and worst of all, anti-art. We wouldn’t have the Incredibles, Finding Nemo, or Toy Story, if we didn’t let directors tell original, personal stories. Am I excited for Incredibles 3? Of course I am! But you can’t do that forever. Why not give Brad permission to make something new? 

The rage that I feel reading the quote above, you have no idea. I’m screaming writing this. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? BAH. AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH. 

Anyway thank you for reading. I love da movies.

Kind regards, 

James