By Paul Hall
Joe Gardner (voiced by Jamie Foxx) is a middle school band teacher. He shares his passion for jazz with his students and believes finding any bright shining star in the band is heaven. Music is in Joe’s heart, but his mother simply wants him to get a full-time position and, of course, the insurance that comes with it. But Joe still wants to perform, and perform he will in the new animated Disney/Pixar release Soul, available now on Disney+.
An offer he can’t refuse comes to Joe, courtesy of a former student, and Joe’s talented performance lands him the opportunity to play with one of his favorite jazz singers, Dorothea Williams (Angela Bassett). But one wrong step and it will all go away and, of course, the man who is floating because of his good fortune takes that one step.
One wrong step and one wrong turn has Joe off to “The Great Before.” It is a land that exists to assign new souls their personalities, quirks and interests. Older souls are paired with the new souls to help them unlock their inner makeup. And Joe, even though he shouldn’t be there, ends up paired with 22 (Tina Fey). It is up to him to inspire 22 to round out the soul and prepare it for Earth.
The pairing will lead to the two finding out more about each other than they intended as Joe just wants to go back and 22 is happy to exist in The Great Before. Where will the souls of Joe and 22 end up, and what events will take them there?
This is a splendid film. Pete Docter, Kemp Powers and the animators at Pixar created characters who are intensely deep in their actual development and yet so simple on the screen that the juxtaposition allows us to sink into their being. Both of our main characters are loaded with layers that come through the screen with a vivid connection.
Foxx becomes Joe, a man who oozes jazz from every pore. He is able to show us the will and desire not only from the standpoint of music appreciation, but also as a man who is easily distracted from what is really important.
Fey is so good as the seemingly aimless 22, who just can’t seem to keep a Guardian. She can do so much through simple voice inflection — when 22 is stressed, we feel stressed. And most of all, we fall in love with this character who could be any one of us at one point in our life or another, not knowing where we fit in.
The jazz soundtrack adds its own element of feeling to the film. From the underwhelming — that’s the nice way to say it — performance of Joe’s middle school band to the jazz club audition and simple backings that exist throughout, the music becomes almost a character of its own.
Soul is a journey that will take adults through the paces of life, evoking memories both good and bad. The film may have a harder time connecting with the really young kids, as the lovable characters don’t do enormous amounts of singing and dancing.
This is an animated film for all that will remind you to let your soul sing, no matter where you are on your own journey.
Paul’s Grade: A-
Soul
Rated PG
Voices of: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton, Rachel House, Alice Braga, Angela Bassett
Directors: Pete Docter, Kemp Powers
