Sunday, November 30, 2014

Big Hero 6

November came so close to not having a single post!  Whew, cutting it close.  Anyway, I'm here to talk about the animated movie Big Hero 6, which I had been itching to see ever since I saw the first preview.  For a while things kept getting in the way of me seeing it, and when I finally set a day to watch it with my dad, I was so excited.  Yet, when I first sat down in the theater, I had a brief, awful panic in my chest that the movie I had been so pumped for might well just be another silly kid's movie, and that I would have nothing interesting to post about in my blog.  I am glad to say that I had no reason to panic, because Big Hero 6 has the depth, heart, humor, and excitement to be genuinely appreciated by people of all ages.

There were a lot of likable characters, but I'll start with my favorite: Baymax, the robotic care provider that looks like the world's most huggable marshmallow and the thing that I want most for Christmas (I'm looking at you, Dad!).  He was the reason for most of my laughs during the film, thanks to his guilelessness and innocence, and how he (sometimes literally) bounces off of the world around him.  The lovable and sweet Baymax was created by Tadashi, the older brother of the other protagonist Hiro, who has a genius that rivals that of Tony Stark.  When Hiro gets caught up with a mysterious man who has stolen his microbots, he upgrades Baymax and his other friends (who, by the way, are gloriously nerdy) to a superhero status to capture the thief.  Of course the action that is inevitably involved with the creation of a team of genius superheroes is fun to see, but the movie does more than show cool fight scenes.

There is a point that is surprisingly darker than what I would have expected from an animated movie.  I obviously won't go into detail to avoid spoilers, but I was impressed at how unafraid the movie was to confront the gruesome reality of the pain, resentment, and even vengeance that human nature is capable of.  At the same time, the movie does not stray from its morals, thanks in large part to being grounded in Baymax, whose sole purpose is to heal and to care.  I felt as many emotional moments as I did funny moments, which is why I can honestly say that Big Hero 6 is more than just another kids' movie.  Personally, I think anyone who watches this movie and doesn't at least come close to crying is a soulless being who has no business reading my blog.  With its sweet humor, awesome characters, and unexpected twists to the plot, Big Hero 6 has won my heart.  I even got a new favorite catch phrase from it, thanks to a strong-willed, feisty female character who tells everyone they need to "Woman up!"  Yeah, definitely going to make that my life's motto.