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[entremet]

https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2017/06/how-pixar-lost-its-way/524484/

Bummed what has happened as a Pixar fanboy (check avatar)

The painful verdict is all but indisputable: The golden era of Pixar is over. It was a 15-year run of unmatched commercial and creative excellence, beginning with Toy Story in 1995 and culminating with the extraordinary trifecta of wall-e in 2008, Up in 2009, and Toy Story 3 (yes, a sequel, but a great one) in 2010. Since then, other animation studios have made consistently better films. The stop-motion magicians at Laika have supplied such gems as Coraline and Kubo and the Two Strings. And, in a stunning reversal, Walt Disney Animation Studios—adrift at the time of its 2006 acquisition of the then-untouchable Pixar—has rebounded with such successes as Tangled, Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, and Big Hero 6. One need only look at this year’s Oscars: Two Disney movies, Zootopia and Moana, were nominated for Best Animated Feature, and Zootopia won. Pixar’s Finding Dory was shut out altogether.

 

[MadLaughter]

I cried for 45 minutes straight during Inside Out.

 

[Ricky_R]

They stumbled a bit, but they still got it.

 

[Heroman]

Lost their way? Finding Dory was a fantastic movie.

 

[Einchy]

I cried for 45 minutes straight during Inside Out.

Finding Dory doesn't get enough love.

Is it better than Inside Out? Not really but damn is that movie emotional.

 

[lobdale]

They just need to stop cranking out sequels and get back to original concepts, which it seems like they will once they get stupid Cars 3 outta their system.

 

[Phu]

The Oscars seem like a misguided place to look to gauge a studio's/film's success.

 

[RareFantasy64]

I don't check for their projects much but I am more pumped for Toy Story 4 than I have ever been for any other Disney/Pixar movie. A love story centered on Woody going after Bo (who unfortunately was lost from the group between TS2 and TS3) is exactly what I wanted when I found out she wasn't in Toy Story 3. I hate when strong supporting characters disappear.

 

[FreshCakes]

Lost their way? Finding Dory was a fantastic movie.

Haaaa, I get it.

 

[DJ_Lae]

They've meandered a bit, I guess, although the only Pixar movie I would call truly bad would be The Good Dinosaur.

Finding Dory was fun.

 

[kirblar]

They just need to stop cranking out sequels and get back to original concepts, which it seems like they will once they get stupid Cars 3 outta their system.

Cars gets made cause it makes too much money not to make.

 

[Turin Turambar]

Wreck-It Ralph, Frozen, and Big Hero 6.

Wreck It Ralph and Big Hero 6 were turds, though.

 

[PeakPointMatrix]

It's a pendulum swing. Their success was bound to hit a rough point eventually. But even their "off" years are leagues better than most studios can hope for. For now I'm actually looking forward to Coco, and most surprisingly Cars 3 as well.

Wreck It Ralph and Big Hero 6 were turds, though.

Speed running the fastest way to make your opinion irrelevant I see.

 

[Nafai1123]

Inside Out is easily in the top 3 Pixar films.

 

[Extra Sauce]

Lost their way? Finding Dory was a fantastic movie.

If you ain't first, you're last.

 

[Imperial Bishop]

*A Pixar film isn't nominated for best-animated film*

"PIXAR IS DONE!"

 

[Pein]

Yeah all their movies since Toy story 3 have been ok. Nothing from their recent output has been a classic.

Disney though, I fucking loved zootopia and moana.

 

[Blastoise]

Haven't been excited for a Pixar feature since Toy Story 3.

 

[George Oscar Bluth II]

I'll be honest - Inside Out didn't really do anything for me. It was fine but it didn't feel like a return to form at all.

 

[James Scott]

I think Inside out still pales in comparison to their early stuff with movies like Brave and Cars marking the decline. The new one that looks like a book of life doesn't seem very interesting either.
Toys Story 3 was still pretty incredible, though.

 

[RinsFury]

Inside Out says otherwise. That movie reduced me to tears so many times.

 

[M.W.]

It will be lost until The Incredibles 2

 

[Biggest-Geek-Ever]

There's literally one mention of Inside Out in the article and none of Coco.

What's interesting to note is that Disney Animation's next two films are sequels. I think we'll see a reversal of roles of sorts, where Pixar gets back to original properties while Disney Animation levies these well-received pictures into franchise films. Worth noting is that there are two Pixar films slated for 2020 that are said to be original.

 

[Decado]

*shrugs* Was never a huge fan of theirs, but even I can see the slide. Their films have been outright dull for the past 1/2 dozen years+. Both my gf and I hated Inside Out. I didn't see the appeal and it was about as subtle as a hammer.

 

[Massive Duck. C.M.]

Oscar judges don't even watch all of the movies up, and even if they do they sometimes don't even watch them in their entirety.

Still, Pixar did fall off at one point and have come back to some degree but Disney snatched the crown back in the interim

 

[Loxley]

It's a pendulum swing. Their success was bound to hit a rough point eventually. But even their "off" years are leagues better than most studios can hope for. For now I'm actually looking forward to Coco, and most surprisingly Cars 3 as well.

Exactly. Literally every animation studio in existence has rough periods (like every film studio, really). Hell, Disney has had several in their 80+ years of animation, and now they're kicking ass again. This stuff happens in cycles.

 

[Princess Viola]

They've meandered a bit, I guess, although the only Pixar movie I would call truly bad would be The Good Dinosaur.

I legit forgot that was even a thing.

 

[Gentleman Jack]

Oscar nominations, let alone awards, especially in the animation category, are the worst possible barometer of metrics like originality and overall quality.

 

[Kaladin]

Disney bought Pixar and started doing Pixar quality movies better than Pixar.

 

[ZeoVGM]

Monsters University was really good. Finding Dory and Inside Out are both fantastic, with Inside Out being one of their best films in general. They have Coco coming out this fall and Incredibles 2 next summer.

This article would have made sense after the bad Cars 2 and disappointing Brave, which were five and six years ago. Not now.

 

[entremet]

There's literally one mention of Inside Out in the article and none of Coco.

What's interesting to note is that Disney Animation's next two films are sequels. I think we'll see a reversal of roles of sorts, where Pixar gets back to original properties while Disney Animation levies these well-received pictures into franchise films. Worth noting is that there are two Pixar films slated for 2020 that are said to be original.

Inside Out is an exception to a downward trend.

 

[WickedLaharl]

I loved finding Dory and felt it was a better movie than zootopia.

 

[Ricky_R]

I think Inside out still pales in comparison to their early stuff with movies like Brave and Cars marking the decline. The new one that looks like a book of life doesn't seem very interesting either.
Toys Story 3 was still pretty incredible, though.

I'm going to assume you mean Cars 2.

 

[siddx]

Lol what nonsense. Only people who think pixar has lost its way are the same obnoxious internet dwellers who feed off tearing down everything beloved by the wider public.

 

[BeforeU]

Finding Dory doesn't get enough love.

Is it better than Inside Out? Not really but damn is that movie emotional.

Finding Dori was not nearly as good as the Nemo. It was just average and felt like a forced sequel

 

[GitarooMan]

I think it's less they've lost their way, and more that they are not far and away at the top anymore, which is fine. Disney Animation has been killing it, Zootopia and Moana were both amazing films. Finding Dory didn't leave a huge impact on me, but Inside Out is top level stuff.

 

[broncobuster]

The consistency ain't there anymore. Everything between Ratatouille (or first part of Wall-E) to Inside Out was weak. Inside Out was fantastic and followed by The Good Dinosaur, Finding Dory, and Cars 3. Who knows, maybe Cars and Thor will have something common and have their first good movies this year.

Also feels like other animation studios stepped it up big time.

 

[Pagusas]

I cried for 45 minutes straight during Inside Out.

Legit question, why?

 

[Chase17]

I loved Piper.

 

[mattiewheels]

I think Brave and Cars 2 made people worry about them. I never saw Brave, but everything I read about it made it seem like a waste of time.

 

[KevinG]

Pixar has a couple of outright duds (Cars 2 being the most prominent in my mind), but they're still masters of their craft.

This article is stupid.

 

[Maximo]

I cried for 45 minutes straight during Inside Out.

Inside out is a great movie that I feel nothing to go back and watch again.

 

[Kaladin]

Pixar just needs to stop doing sequels. They can't all be Toy Story 2 and 3. Focus on new stories and stick to your strong suit.

 

[Lebron]

Walt Disney Animation had been out pacing them for a while now. Yeah.

 

[Clefargle]

DOOOOOOMED

 

[MisterHero]

They gotta stop releasing stuff every year and just do stuff they want to do

or is that unsustainable

 

[Triggerhappytel]

Anyone who thinks they've lost their way needs to watch Partysaurus Rex. I'm absolutely serious; it's amazing.

 

[JaseMath]

Pixar needs original content. Good original content.

 

[Trigonometrize.]

Pixar's "golden era" wasn't even that long, and they're still putting out great movies here and there. The narrative that they're a shell of their former self is dumb.

Disney bought Pixar and started doing Pixar quality movies better than Pixar.

Lasseter knows what he's doing, clearly.

 

[NOLA_Gaffer]

My legendary trifecta is Ratatouille, Wall-E, and Up.

Just wall-to-wall feels on all three.