Movie-wise, the last year wasn't all that great. A lot of highly expected movies had their premieres delayed and they will come out this year (or not). However, some movies still made it out, and the new Pixar animated film Soul is one of them.
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The film takes the audience into an extraordinary world where unborn souls live and get ready to travel to Earth. The film's main hero, Joe, ends up in this world and has to find his way back home. The film has a lot to offer and is worth watching. There are some things every person who watched Soul or is about to do so should know, though.
May Contain Spoilers for the film Soul.
10 It Contains References To Previous Movies
The film proves that many things have a connection. It contains easter-eggs and references to previous animated movies. Pete Docter, the Soul's director, created some of them, such as Up (2009), Monsters, Inc. (2001), or the popular Inside Out (2015). Fans of this genre then should have a great time looking for all the clever nods and easter eggs that are in the film.
9 Tina Fey Helped Create Soul 22
Soul 22 is one of the best characters in the film. Cynical, jaded, unwilling to compromise and go to Earth after all. Tina Fey voiced the character but she did much more than that. She actively participated in creating Soul 22. Fey is an experienced writer, having created her own shows. So it might not come as a surprise to her fans that she helped write her character's lines, and as a result, made the part truly her own.
8 Joe's Family's Business Exists
Joe's family business actually exists. Or, more precisely, it draws inspiration from a real place. Joe's mom has a successful tailoring business. The Advanced European Tailoring shop in Berkeley, California, served as an inspiration source for the film's business. Pixar animators spent a lot of time in the shop. They studied everything possible, from the shop's look to the way its employees moved. They also spoke with the owners of the business about why they do the job they do. As a result, the tailoring business in the movie feels realistic.
7 It Takes Place On A Single Day
The stakes are high in the film. Joe has to get on Earth to play alongside Dorothea Williams. In order to do that, he has to prepare soul 22, she has to be ready to leave the Great Before. Since the film keeps a fast pace and rushes forward, it's easy not to realize that it all takes place on a single day.
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The only exception is the final shot which happens the next morning. This was possible because time flows in a different way in the Great Before.
6 Joe Could Have Been Much Different
Joe Gardner, voiced by Jamie Foxx, is a musician who loves jazz and dreams about getting his break. However, the initial idea of Joe was very different. The creators wanted Joe to be an actor who finally gets his big break on Broadway and they only later switched acting to playing music. Joe wasn't even supposed to be the main character at first, that honor should have gone to soul 22. And in older versions of the script, Joe was much more cynical when dealing with his students.
5 Jamie Foxx Is Close To Music
Sometimes art mirrors life, and it's true for Soul as well. Jamie Foxx plays the talented jazz musician Joe Gardner. What might not even his fans know is that Foxx is a talented musician in real life as well. He can sing and has released multiple studio albums, the last one in 2015. What's more, portraying Joe Gardner isn't even the first time Jamie Foxx played a jazz pianist. He played the legendary Ray Charles in the 2004 biopic Ray.
4 It Doesn't Have A Typical Antagonist
In a lot of movies, it's natural to work with an antagonist. This person causes trouble for the main heroes, they make their lives more difficult and they tend to be evil. Soul, on the other hand, doesn't have a typical antagonist.
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Closest to it is Terry who tries to track down Joe after she learns that Joe didn't go into the afterlife. However, Terry isn't tracking Joe because she's evil - she's doing it because it's her job. And her impact on the film isn't as major as one might expect.
3 It's On Disney+
The COVID-19 pandemic changed many things. One of them is the way people watch movies these days. Movie theaters are closed, and as a result, film fans make use of DVDs and streaming services. That led to Soul having a special first - it's the first Pixar feature film that didn't have its release in movie theaters. Instead, the film is available on Disney+. It doesn't require paying an additional price, every subscriber of Disney+ can watch it.
2 It's Successful
Unlike some other films that people didn't pay attention to on streaming services, Soul proved to be a successful movie. In fact, it appears in the top three of most watched straight-to-home-viewing films released on a streaming service last year. Other highly successful movies of 2020 released in this way are Hamilton and Wonder Woman 1984 but Soul has a better Rotten Tomatoes rating than the latter.
1 It's Not A Movie For Kids
Of course, children can still watch and enjoy Soul. But since its two main protagonists are adult, and soul 22 is hundreds of years soul, if not more, it's different from other Pixar movies. Children might not understand the questions the film poses as well as adults will. The film offers plenty of opportunities for children to laugh but adult viewers are more likely to notice all its hidden meanings and the small details that make Soul remarkable.