A light-hearted Pixar film set on the Italian Riviera. It has the hallmarks of Pixar, with the addition of anthropomorphic sea monsters.
I am not usually one for Pixar, especially films like Luca that are specifically made for children. I do not have kids or young family members to give me an excuse to watch this stuff, but with Luca being a nod to Italian neorealist films (it really is that deep) I thought I would try it, and it was… better than I thought it would be. The newest release in the long line of Pixar films; Luca is set in the 1950s in a small town on the Italian Riviera, it follows Luca Paguro (Jacob Tremblay), a sea monster youngling who can assume human form whenever he sets foot on land. He begins to explore the nearby town with his other sea monster friend, Alberto Scorfano (Jack Dylan Grazer) and with him, they set out to experience life as a human, having the best summer ever. Adorable and vibrant, this is no classic Pixar, but it is to be enjoyed by kids of all species, fish, and land people alike.
Luca takes inspiration from director Enrico Casarosa’s childhood growing up in Genoa, although I am guessing he wasn’t a sea monster, but let us say he was because the representation is uncanny. This debut from Casarosa is also heavily inspired by Miyazaki’s style, with the mythical creatures and sense of adventure, throw in some Fellini and it really does dare to be different, even if it doesn’t fire on all cylinders. The animation is impressive – Pixar has come such a long way in a short space of time – the detail on the facial expressions is fantastic. Casarosa really did intend for Luca to be as culturally accurate as possible, sending Pixar artists to the Riviera to obtain information on the aesthetics and the environment to be as spot on as it could be – even if the main antagonist is dressed in modern day clothes like an out of place English toff tourist.
Luca begins with the titular character facing boredom with his underwater life of sea monster activity; herding goatfish like your resident local shepherd and living with a curiosity of the world above the sea. He soon meets another young sea monster called Alberto who tempts Luca to the surface, enticing him to explore the area for adventure and the lure of Vespa scooters – you can imagine that all young boys from that era were obsessed with the cool and trendy Vespa’s. The two boys explore the local area in their human forms, much to the dismay of Luca’s parents Daniella and Lorenzo (Maya Rudolph and Jim Gaffigan) who forbid him to visit the land again, due to it being dangerous and unforgiving. Egged on by Grandma Paguro (Sandy Martin), Luca runs away – well, swims away – with Alberto to the nearby town in the hopes of getting their own scooter so they can travel across Italy together.
Whilst on the land the two boys meet local bully Ercole Visconti (Saverio Raimondo) and are then saved by a local girl called Giulia Marcovaldo (Emma Burman), who reveals she hates Ercole because he beats her in the Portorosso Cup Race every year – a triathlon of sorts but eating spaghetti has replaced the running part which sounds good to me. They team up to win the race so the boys can get that illustrious Vespa they crave. Worried about their son, Luca’s parents also assume human form so they can search for their son – with Daniella turning onto prime Paolo Rossi at one point in the search. Luca begins to learn the facts of the human world, instead of believing the tall tales that Alberto has been telling him which leads to an altercation between the two boys, with Alberto then getting betrayed by Luca, much to the embarrassment of the former. To make amends, Luca proceeds to enter the competition on his own to get that coveted Vespa. This is a Pixar like any other, so expect close calls, bombshells, and an ultimately happy ending.
Luca is a decent film, a tad different than previous Pixar films – with the inclusion of sea monsters and its adopted style. It has that nostalgic feel, with the rustic representation of old Italy being a lovely backdrop for what is quite a tame film, tame in the sense that its narrative and messages felt simple. There were no hidden messages that needed you to think like the Pixar of old; the sea monsters are a blatant metaphor for being an outsider, something that is told in Italian folklore. It basically translates to no matter how different you are you will be accepted into certain circles if given the chance, and the bullies will be found out, a predictable message but a good message. Luca is to be enjoyed by kids mainly, it felt like it was directed mainly for children to watch, it is not Toy Story or Up that can be enjoyed by all age groups with their sharp wit and dark underlying messages, it just did not have that “adult” feel that made all those other Pixar films so successful.
Luca is available to watch on Disney+ now.
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