Lightyear (2022)

Lightyear (2022)

 

7/10

Starring the voices of

Chris Evans

Keke Palmer

Peter Sohn

Taika Waititi

Dale Soules

 

Directed by Angus Maclane

 

 

 

This movie is ok, but it does not hold a candle to the four movies before it. The Buzz character was like the one we know, this one stepped up the annoyance level up a notch. The action and adventure is something young children will love, but not to the extent of wanting to see it again.

This spinoff is on its own with also a voice change from the regular Tim Allen, as this is not the same Buzz that we know. As animations go Disney went all out, something I think in retrospect they would have wished they did not.

Studios take risks with their movies. Nobody knows what the audience will flock to the cinema to get hooked on next. That’s why when studios have a movie franchise that keeps bringing in money, they plan to just milk it for all its worth.

The Toy Story franchise to me is just an amazing job by Disney/Pixar. Four films and each doing financially better than the previous. Even critically all four films are classics. The are written in a forward motion as we watch the Toys deal with Andy as he ages and in the third film out grows them. The last film was an emotional ride, but worth every moment seeing it.

Now when I heard there was going to be a Lightyear movie I expected it to be about the same Buzz from the first film – fourth. But this movie is not about that it is about the movie Andy watched, that made him want Buzz for a toy. So, this is the prequel to the first Toy Story (1995).

So do not go seeing this movie expecting to see anyone from the previous franchise.

Here is the plot:

Buzz Lightyear, a space ranger in Star Command was to explore a planet with his crew and commanding officer and best friend Alisha Hawthorne. The planet they were exploring T'Kani Prime turns out to be the home of hostile creatures and the crew were forced to retreat to their ship, were Buzz damages the ship by accident.

After a year, repairs had been done and Buzz volunteered to test it. But his four-minute hyperspace jump test turns out to be four years on T'Kani, because of Time Dilation. He and the team continue to work and the more tests they carried the older everyone becomes except Buzz who is carrying out the test. After many years Buzz one time returns to discover that many more years have passed and his colony on T'Kani Prime is now under the control of a mysterious Zurg.

Buzz must now work with the only few people not caged in a dome to stop Zurg and free the other members of the colony.

In the end, the movie was cool and I think bad marketing and not enough good word of mouth from the children who go see this wanting to see Woody and the rest.