2006 was the year of the Wii. Opening that up at Christmas, enjoying motion-controlled gaming with Wii Sports. But 2006 for me was a bigger year in terms of films. This was the year of High School Musical. Of Ice Age: The Meltdown. Over The Hedge. And the next adventure from Pixar. Cars was a special something, feeding into the ever-growing need for speed that came from racing games. A film about anthropomorphic cars, and the lesson that winning isn’t everything.
I might not remember when I first watched Cars (likely on DVD the same Christmas I opened that Wii), but I do remember the joy of watching it. Seeing Lightning McQueen be the cocky, win-at-all-cost rookie on the racing circuit. Getting lost by pure accident and that being the best thing that could have happened to him. Seeing the mirror between him and Chick Hicks be shattered as he spends time in Radiator Springs. All that, plus it being what got me into Rascal Flatts from their cover of Life Is A Highway.
Lightning’s transformation from do-it-yourself loner to someone who accepts and even provides help was built up well. All stemming from his interactions with Mater. Here is someone who had only just met McQueen, had little reason to like him, yet believed in his heart that they could be friends. Seeing how stressed McQueen was so tries to lighten him up. And what Mater starts, the others of Radiator Springs soon start doing so as well.
McQueen might at first be fixing the road for his own selfish reasons, but in fixing his wrongdoing, the denizens of Radiators Springs start trusting him. Which builds the bonds necessary for him to then help them for selfless reasons instead. Doc Hudson, former race car he is, still holding back. Only seeing McQueen for what he was and not what he has grown to be. But is still convinced to head to California with the others to help McQueen one more time at his tie-breaker race.
And what a race! Everything McQueen has been through ties up here. Missing his new friends he was ripped from, then being happy they came to help him. Using moves he was taught to help navigate the issues placed on him. And the final moment that obliterates the mirror between McQueen and Hicks. Giving up the win to help The King finish his final race. A position The King was put in because of Hicks’ win-at-all-cost attitude.
Of course, before getting to any of this, there’s the opening. McQueen’s pep talk to himself in the dark. The trailer door opening to reveal the light and excitement of the stadium. Real Gone kicking in as the race gets underway. And the commentators giving us the first details of this story and the main competitors of the Piston Cup. It’s flashy, exciting, and the right way to start this story about discovering yourself.
If Cars is about discovering yourself, Cars 2 is about staying true to yourself. Released in 2011, Cars 2 drew a lot of negative criticism. Party from making Mater the star of the show, but also from a feeling that there was so much action that it failed to capture the same heart as the first film. Yet I never felt any of that. I saw it as a worthy sequel to the first showing McQueen at his best.
After all, if McQueen is at his best, what could the film reasonably be without introducing conflict into it. A conflict that comes from friction in a friendship and the collision of two worlds. After all, McQueen is living the high life. He’s a recognisable face. Yet despite his friendship with Mater, putting that carefree spirit into such a spotlight puts McQueen on edge. That alone could have made a movie, but those at Pixar obviously decided to take things in a different direction.
Adding in the elements of a spy movie made sense, considering the spy genre was reaching the heights of its revival era with Bond films Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace breaking into the top ten at the box office. Parodies of the franchise such as Johnny English, and those that took inspiration from them such as Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty Galore. And new spy film franchises such as Mission: Impossible rising to prominence.
Making sure the genre shift was present right from the start, Cars 2 doesn’t begin on a racetrack, but at sea. As an agent takes a look at what the villains are doing, having to make an action-packed escape when discovered. Then making it clear who the focus character is cutting to Mater as the question of “who can stop us?” is asked. And thrusting Mater into the world of spycraft is just another part of the overall theme of staying true to yourself.
Mater takes to exploring the world he finds himself in with his usual carefree way, but the things he goes through – with Finn McMissile calling his very self an act and McQueen telling him to reign his usual self in, all wear him down. That dream sequence where he sees how everyone perceives him is a powerful one. Painting his very core in a negative light. But this is Mater, and so he chooses not to let it take hold of him. Seeing it as an insult to betray himself to fit in.
We’ve seen McQueen’s start with Cars, and his peak in Cars 2, so it seems fitting that every journey has an end. Which is what Cars 3 provides. The end of a legacy. Of choosing how that legacy ends. It’s quite a harrowing start, seeing the passage of time as the world of racing that McQueen knew is quickly being replaced by a new generation of racing machine. McQueen pushing himself to show that he can still win and paying the price for it with a crash out.
Still determined to show he has what it takes to win, McQueen starts training. Utilising the latest technology doesn’t work, so he intends to use the methods he knows best. To the bewilderment of his assigned trainer. Who also didn’t help things with the modern methods, treating him as a washed out banger. Thus, a journey of self-discovery for the two begins.
I found Cruz to be an interesting new addition. Someone who was inspired to race thanks to McQueen, but never had the confidence to. Thus she became a trainer. In getting away from the simulations, getting some real experience through that journey of self-discovery, and McQueen’s faith in her despite the friction that momentarily broke the two apart, Cruz gains the confidence enough to realise that dream. Taking on the reigns from the one who inspired her.
As for McQueen, that journey of self-discovery lets him see his own inspiration, Doc Hudson, in a new light. Seeing that his own life doesn’t have to be over once he stops racing. It’s a nice section of the film, seeing Hudson’s own training grounds and the methods he used from his own mentor. Giving McQueen his own courage to pass the reigns onto Cruz during the Florida 500 race that would force his retirement.
I do find all the Cars films great watches. The first will always be the great film that got me enjoying the universe, with the second being a delightful watch. The third hasn’t been seen by me as much as those other two, but is still as loved. I’d rate them in the order of release, with the first being at the top. I just don’t think that first look at the world of Cars will ever be beaten.
Images Taken From:
Cars | Disney+
Cars 2 | Disney+
Cars 3 | Disney+
