‘Luca’ Review

Pixar often includes a deep message that rises above the surface of its family entertainment. Children and adults can often find meaning in a Pixar movie that they can apply to the way they live life. While Luca doesn’t contain the heavy messages or themes that are commonly found in Pixar, it’s still a worthwhile adventure that kids will certainly love. 

Premise

Luca (Jacob Tremblay) is a sea creature who finds himself bored with his life under the sea. He has a deep interest in what lies on the shores. When the sea monsters are onshore, they transform into humans and only show their true form when wet. When he meets Alberto (Jack Dylan Grazer), a rebellious sea creature who lives a secluded life on land, he becomes enamored with what life on land has to offer. The two then bond with a human kid in a small Italian town and begin to go on adventures together, while also trying to avoid being discovered. 

Review

Where Luca shines is the bond between Luca and Alberto. The two form a strong friendship that begins to change each character. Luca becomes more confident and curious while Alberto finally learns responsibility. Once the end of the film comes along, you realize that you became attached to these characters and were invested in their friendship. Tremblay and Grazer have great chemistry with one another and lend themselves to their characters well.

The film doesn’t have much of a narrative, so it’s really focused on their friendship. Pixar has created a coming-of-age film where Luca is really discovering who he really is and what he wants to do. There is a storyline where Luca and Alberto compete in a bike race so they can win a Vespa, but this is mostly a MacGuffin that drives the emotional arcs for the characters. Some other subplots involve Luca’s parents (Maya Rudoph & Jim Gaffigan) searching for him on land. 

I also enjoyed Giulia (Emma Berman) as a girl named Luca and Alberto befriend. She has her own arc that mixes well with the arcs of the other main characters. One element that doesn’t work with this film is Ercole, the villain in the film. However, he isn’t much of a villain. He just appears now and then to bully characters and be a jerk. He isn’t intimidating and is mostly there to add more drama to the race at the end. 

The animation is beautiful with the Italian town being bright and colorful, giving Luca a charming tone. The detail is incredible, especially in the water sequences. The scenes where the characters transform or a part of their skin get wet are impressive, creating many entertaining sequences throughout.

As I said, there isn’t much of a plot and it can often feel aimless. The middle of the film is mainly just Luca and Alberto running around the town, doing various activities. The bike race itself isn’t an interesting element of Luca. The emotional heart of the film is Luca battling his dual identities of human and sea monster. This battle leads to many heartwarming but also hurtful moments as he tries to balance his own selfish morals versus his loyalty towards his other relationships. 

Also, the town which they visit is incredibly hostile towards sea monsters. The townsfolk will straight up harpoon a sea monster before they ask any questions. However, not much is done with this. While keeping their identities a secret is a main part of the conflict, the townsfolk get over it incredibly quickly considering their extensive years of prejudice. 

Final verdict

If you are looking for the next great Pixar movie, Luca isn’t it. It’s still quite good, but it doesn’t match the quality of Pixar’s best. I can see many forgetting about this movie as it doesn’t contain a great narrative or message that Pixar is known for. However, if you enjoy coming-of-age stories about friendship and discovering your own identity, then you might get a kick out of this. I can definitely see kids enjoying this one more than adults. I found myself entertained throughout and became emotionally invested in the main friendship by the end. Luca may not be Pixar’s best, but it’s still a worthwhile adventure.

Final score: 4/5