"Big Hero 6" is the latest big-screen animated adventure from the animators at Disney. Set in San Fransokyo, where the Golden Gate bridge has Rashomon Gate-like architecture on the top merging the capital of Japan with the northern California setting, the story follows young Hiro Hamada and his robot companion Baymax as they help stop a masked criminal from wreaking havoc.
Where does this mash-up come from?
Disney is running two distinct feature animation companies -- its own named section that has produced the likes of "Frozen" and "Wreck-it Ralph," and the separately run Pixar, which continues to generate films with a slightly different character.
The supposed split between the two groups is made more interesting in this case, as this film seems to owe quite a bit to one of Pixar's greatest filmmakers, Brad Bird. Bird's "Iron Giant" and "The Incredibles" seem to be spiritual precursors to this tale of a boy and his automaton companion, mixed together with a ragtag bunch of costume-wearing crimefighters.
The overt origin for the "Big Hero 6" storyline comes from an obscure Marvel comic book from the late 1990s. The Disney acquisition of Marvel allows for some of this cross-pollination, even if in its animated form there's little to tie the original comic to the feature film.
That Baymax thing sure looks squishy!
Yeah, Baymax is in some ways the heart of the film, a soft and cuddly healing bot that helps Hiro become a, um, hero. A huge chunk of the film's enjoyment rests on the inflated shoulders of this big white bot, and the soothing vocal performance by Scott Adsit is so central that in many territories the film is even named after the character.
There's not much you haven't seen before -- the precocious teen who has grown up a little too fast, the dastardly villain taking control of his creation, and the ragtag bunch of classmates who rally to defend their friend. It's silly (of course) to be offended that a Disney animated film traffics in archetypes, but in this context it felt a little heavy-handed, even if that hand was white, vinyl and inflated.
It kind of looks like a bunch of other films, too.
Well, yeah. When the action ramps up, and Baymax transforms into a ninja-fighting pro that Hiro literally rides, it starts to feel like a weaker vision of (the non-Disney) "How To Train Your Dragon." Even when swooping through the city, there just doesn't feel like there's enough scope to the drama. Story-wise everything is telegraphed, the characters entirely two-dimensional despite their lovingly rendered appearance. Grand emotional moments seem more forced than truly earned. (The Pixar short that opens the film, "Feast," about a dog and junk food, may be appalling to those who fear for serious gastrointestinal issues for the canine, but as a pure mode of storytelling done with concision and poise, it makes the feature that follows it feel all the more dull.)
So, should I bother?
I applaud Disney for trying something different here, going the extra mile to craft a strange hybrid of both setting and character. There's loads to admire about what they do in terms of animation, including a pretty spot-on delivery of Baymax. Fans of animation, and parents who will drag their kids anyway, will certainly find the film a decent affair.
The film is decent, and maybe that's enough for some. I just felt that the story became dull and tedious, many of the secondary characters were more obnoxious than captivating, and there simply wasn't enough to keep me interested through to the end.
My reaction is as mixed as the architecture in this film, and the disappointment is probably couched by what could have been a really interesting, elegant movie. I think another Disney film with a slew of animation, "Guardians of the Galaxy," did a better (and obviously more adult) job of mining the weird corners of the Marvel universe this year. There are plenty of other films that do what "Big Hero 6" does, only better. Still, I'd probably give it a shot, if only to see if you'll fall harder than I did into Baymax's embrace.
"Big Hero 6" is now playing in theatres.
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