and I wanna ride it all night long
If you’re going my way
I wanna drive it all night long …

That’s probably one of the main things which went into my head and got stuck inside, long after the movie ended. From the movie Cars, that’s what I’m talking about. Judging by what history has shown, every single one of Pixar’s movies, from Toy Story, to Monster Inc and The Incredibles, in my opinion has been a real winner. Not just graphically, but story wise also. All of them have a story to tell, with a meaning behind it all; provided you’re able to extract it. Cars has a real huge shoe to fit into, and thankfully, it’s one nice tight fit.

It’s a wonder that Pixar managed to infuse such humanistic and believable character and emotions into such an inanimate object, this case being a car. It’s quite a surreal, almost inimaginable feeling, just looking at the first few minutes of the show. It’s not easy to imagine that the character is a real human, taking the shape of a car, with four wheels as limbs, and the front radiator grille as a mouth. That, or imagining a car with the wit, emotions and feelings of a person. Eitherway, it’s just as difficult.

That’s the beauty of animation. It’s a make believe world, waiting to be created, as wonderous as you can imagine. As beautiful as you can imagine it to be. A story about self discovery, about life in the fast lane, with all it’s fame and glory. A story about slowing down and taking the time to smell the flowers growing by the side of the highway. When you reflect back on it all, it actually makes sense too. Life isn’t always about living in the fast lane. There is life too, where the pace is slow, where the air is fresher and the grass is greener. Or is it just me? A story about the ritz, the glory, the attitude and the self-centeredness and about learning to appreciate all that is around you. Learning to appreciate the finer things in life, not the the glam and the glitz.

Why make a movie with humans and what’s familar to tell a story. Why not take something which we (almost) take for granted in our daily lives, turn it into something believable, and then use that as a metaphor to tell the story. That is the ultimate test in story telling. That is what Pixar did, and I dare say that it excelled in it too!

I guess I’ll never look at a car the same way ever again.

Now, where is my Porsche 911 Carrera?