PLANES (2013)

Genre: CG Animation
Director: Klay Hall
Cast: Dane Cook, Stacy Keach, Brad Garrett, Teri Hatcher, Cedric the Entertainer, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, John Cleese, Carlos Alazraqui, Priyanka Chopra, Gabriel Iglesias, Roger Craig Smith, Colin Cowherd, Sinbad, Oliver Kalkofe, Brent Musburger, Anthony Edwards, Val Kilmer
RunTime: 1 hr 35 mins
Rating: G
Released By: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
Official Website: https://www.facebook.com/DisneyPlanes

Opening Day: 5 September 2013

Synopsis: From above the world of “Cars” comes “Disney’s Planes,” an action-packed 3D animated comedy adventure featuring Dusty (voice of Dane Cook), a plane with dreams of competing as a high-flying air racer. But Dusty’s not exactly built for racing—and he happens to be afraid of heights. So he turns to a seasoned naval aviator who helps Dusty qualify to take on the defending champ of the race circuit. Dusty’s courage is put to the ultimate test as he aims to reach heights he never dreamed possible, giving a spellbound world the inspiration to soar. 

Movie Review:

‘Cars’ may not have been the most well-received Pixar animation, but it and its sequel did make a ton of money at the box office and even more through its merchandising. There’s no disguising therefore the motivation behind DisneyToon Studios’ spinoff ‘Planes’, which was supposed to go direct-to-DVD before being scheduled for a theatrical release with 3D prints no less.

As if the ads didn’t scream it, the opening scene of the movie makes absolutely clear of its relationship with that Pixar franchise by unabashedly announcing “From Above the World of ‘Cars’”. Indeed, in many ways, one could consider ‘Planes’ a ripoff. One of its key characters, Dusty Crophopper (voiced by Dane Cook), hails from an American Midwest town called Propwash Junction much like that of Radiator Springs. Like either one of the ‘Cars’ movies, this one is also set in the world of competitive racing, or more accurately in this case competitive flying.

Within a perfectly identifiable context unspools an entirely familiar underdog tale not unlike ‘A Bug’s Life’, ‘Ratatouille’ and most recently ‘Turbo’. Unwilling to accept his crop-dusting fate of spraying fertiliser on farm fields, Dusty instead dreams of competing in the Wings Around the Globe race, refusing to be daunted by his colleague Leadbottom (Cedric The Entertainer) nor his four-wheeled pals Chug (Brad Garrett) and Dottie (Teri Hatcher) despite their efforts to talk him out of it. But when he unexpectedly wows the crowd at a local tryout, Chug and Dottie begin to see that there just might be hope to achieving his seemingly impossible dream.

Besides them, Dusty gets some invaluable help from the crusty Skipper (Stacy Keach), a veteran Navy Corsair whose past exploits commanding the celebrated Jolly Wrenches squadron are the stuff of legend around town - and in yet another parallel from ‘Cars’, Skipper is cast from the same mould as Paul Newman’s Doc Hudson. Whereas Pixar might have taken some time to develop the mentor-trainee relationship between Dusty and Skipper, screenwriter Jeffrey M. Howard cuts straight into the racing’s big leagues, with Dusty’s only impediment being his fear of heights.

Since ‘Cars 2’ made most of its coin overseas, ‘Planes’ too adopts a similarly globe-trotting premise, as the race takes our characters from New York to Iceland, then to Germany, across the Himalayas to China, over the Pacific Ocean to Mexico, and finally back to the Big Apple. Along the way, Dusty makes friends of his French-Canadian competitor Rochelle (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), her scene-stealing Mexican suitor El Chupacabra (Carlos Alazraqui), and a stiff British upper-lip Bulldog (John Cleese); oh, he also finds a possible romantic interest in Indian competitor Ishani (Priyanka Chopra).

Rather than risk losing its core audience’s (read: kids) attention, director Klay Hall doesn’t allow much down time in between the various legs of the race; instead, a lot of time is spent in the air delivering the vertiginous thrills sure to delight the young ones especially with the added joy of 3D. And as Dusty conquers the odds within himself and Mother Nature, he also gets to deal with a nasty competitor Ripslinger (Roger Craig Smith), a world champion racer determined not to let some upstart upstage him.

Yet the fact that there is hardly any time for any substantial dramatic beats in between the action is not likely to bother anyone just looking for some good-ol’ midair adventure. Hall dutifully trots out the iconic imagery at every stopover (including we might add some pretty niftily-designed automobiles from Nepal), while ensuring that the scenery during every section of the race is definitive enough on its own to never seem repetitive. In particular, a frightening storm at sea is one of the more exhilarating bits, preceded by an amusing segment on board a USS aircraft carrier.

For all its derivativeness therefore, there’s no denying that this is a perfectly agreeable animation. Every bit of its design is reminiscent of ‘Cars’ - ditto for its underdog story and the overarching theme of believing in oneself no matter the odds; but once you put aside all expectations of originality, you’ll find a reasonably appealing action adventure, a perfectly game voice cast (including the likes of former ‘Top Gun’ actors Anthony Edwards and Val Kilmer as a pair of F-18 Hornets), and a surprising amount of attention to detail to please aviation buffs.

So to use its own analogy, this ‘Planes’ may not soar, but it certainly does find a nice cruising altitude to please the young ones and keep their adult companions sufficiently engaged - that is, we suspect, more than enough for its core family audience. 

Movie Rating:

(No matter whether you consider this a spinoff or ripoff of ‘Cars’, ‘Planes’ is a perfectly amiable action adventure that offers plenty of midair thrills to keep the young ones entertained)

Review by Gabriel Chong