Planes (2013) [Blu-ray]
Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

Tagline: From above the world of Cars

The world of Cars takes flight in Planes, Disney's high-flying animated comedy revved up with action and adventure. Join Dusty, a crop duster with sky-high dreams and a once-in-a-lifetime chance to take on the world's fastest flyers in the greatest air race ever. Dusty has a huge heart but two big problems... he's not exactly built for speed, plus he's afraid of heights. His courage is put to the ultimate test as this unlikely hero aims higher than he ever imagined. With a little help from his friends, Dusty finds the courage to be more than he was built for and the inspiration to soar.

Storyline: Dusty Crophopper is a little cropduster plane with a fear of heights and a crazy dream of being a racer. While his friends need convincing, Dusty gets the training he needs from Skipper, a veteran fighter, and qualifies for the Wings Across the World race. In the event, Dusty finds competitors who soon learn that there is something special about this underdog as he is tested to his physical and emotional limits. In doing so, Dusty soon finds enemies, and more importantly friends, who are inspired by his dream. In the face of all obstacles, the winner of this air race will be anyone's guess. Written by Kenneth Chisholm (kchishol@rogers.com)

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Kenneth Brown on November 21, 2013 -- High above the world of Cars comes a low-altitude spin-off that never quite takes off. That's right, three aviation puns in one sentence. And if that has you rolling your eyes, brace yourself for director Klay Hall's Planes, a well-intentioned family-friendly racer sure to entertain younger kids, and just the kids. There's nothing particularly terrible about the film, and it's certainly not as bad as you've probably heard. Still, the animation lacks the fresh coat of paint typical of most theatrically released CG-animated spectacles, Jeffrey M. Howard's screenplay relies heavily on familiar cliché after familiar cliché and, sorry to say, the voice cast isn't all that special. Not so surprising considering the psuedo-sequel began its life as a DisneyToon Studios direct-to-video project and was only later promoted to feature film once the powers that be started to see box office potential. And yet Planes remains a decidedly direct-to-video adventure, with Hall and company distilling elements of Cars and Cars 2 into a cute, harmless, ultimately unremarkable underdog story most parents have sat through a hundred times before.

When a crop duster with big dreams named Dusty (Cook) defies all odds and narrowly qualifies for the globe-spanning Wings Across the World race, he finds himself jetting from New York to Iceland, Germany, India, Nepal, Shanghai, Mexico and back across the United States. To win, he'll have to outmanuever and outrace an array of international fliers, including mean-spirited reigning champ, Ripslinger (Roger Craig Smith), and his toadies, Ned and Zed (Gabriel Iglesias); French-Canadian racer, Rochelle (Julia Louis-Dreyfus); stuffy Brit, Bulldog (John Cleese); passionate Mexican Gee Bee, El Chupacabra (Carols Alazraqui); and Indian love interest Ishani (Priyanka Chopra). And it'll take everything Dusty's got, along with a little help from his friends: best friend Chug (Brad Garrett), mechanic Dottie (Teri Hatcher), reluctant mentor Skipper Riley (Stacey Keach), forklift Sparky (Danny Mann), Super Hornet duo Bravo and Echo (Top Gun alumni Val Kilmer and Anthony Edwards), and others who rally behind the crop-dusting upstart.

Despite Hall and Howard's best efforts -- and the two do make a concerted effort -- there's not a lot to Planes that isn't derived from the series' core films. From the quaint but sharply penned Cars comes the clash of vehicular cultures and destinies, the racing scene, a fish out of water adventure, a romantic subplot, a crusty old racing mentor haunted by his past, a cocky rival desperate to win at all costs (he's even green and black, just like ol' Chick Hicks), several sidekicks in the making, and, of course, a glimpse into the eerie but amusing world of sentient cars with no human masters. (Why is Dusty dusting crops exactly? Other than the fact that he's a crop duster?) From the maligned Cars 2 comes the international hotspots, a colorful cast of multinational racers (each one showcasing a bigger stereotype than the last), the thrills and chills of a worldwide race mixed with... you get the idea. Planes is at its finest when imagining how a society of planes would function in the larger Cars world, and when humanizing its aeros and autos. But sparks of imagination don't seem to come as freely or frequently as before, and Dusty's rise to fame is far more derivative than it is original.

Ironically, had Planes never dared to dream more than a direct-to-video dream, it would have been more successful. The film struggles to inflate itself to theatrical proportions, reaching for the stars and barely lifting off the ground. There are laughs to be had, an exciting but predictable race to follow, and enough lovable personalities -- yes, even Cook's Dusty -- to keep the movie in the air. It rarely soars, though, and even at its best, tends to skim the surface of its potential. Adults would do well to watch the disc's behind-the-scenes featurette, "Klay's Flight Plan", and only then giving Planes a go. Realizing how much of the film was a personal passion project for Hall makes for a richer experience. The story still only skims the surface, but the heart it proudly wears on its wings suddenly begins to shine that much brighter. Kids, on the other hand, needn't invest any prep time. Planes will strike anyone under ten as a fun, wondrous race across the skies of one of their favorite animated universes; one with a few life lessons worth reinforcing. (Minus the old you can be anything you want to be when you grow up myth, which most of us spread to children all too eagerly even though we know full well it's little more than a lovely sentiment.) As family entertainment geared for the grade school set goes, it excels. As a Pixar spin-off, though, it lacks a certain level of magic, wit and refinement.

Planes would have been better off abandoning the racing scene of the first two Cars movies and focusing instead on something new to the series' universe. Private and commercial aviation, the Air Force, the daring rescue work glimpsed in the trailer for next years Planes: Fire & Rescue... just a few of the tantalizing possibilities that would have set Hall's spin-off free. Not that kids will care. Younger children will have a blast, if only because they won't notice just how much Planes begs, borrows and lifts from a hundred other underdog stories. Disney's Blu-ray release is more satisfying, fortunately, with an excellent video presentation and involving DTS-HD Master Audio 7.1 surround track. Its supplemental package is much too direct-to-video for a film that earned a theatrical release, but complaints end there. Bottom line? You could do a whole lot worse this holiday season. Planes is perfect for the kiddies, even if it will prove somewhat disappointing for parents.

[CSW] -2.5- I rented the 2D version to see if I wanted to get the 3D version and the answer was no. Although I think 3D would be an enhancement it is not enough to warrant adding it to my collection unless a ton of my great-grandchildren planned to stay here for a while. There is not a lot for adults to enjoy but kids should like it. Not a bad movie to watch once but not a prizewinner and not at all Pixar's greatest effort. Maybe there should be a law that only children should review movies for children. I think kids will both love the overall movie and remember the characters in it for quite a while. If you're an adult you can feel free to skip this one unless there is an 8 year old you can watch it with.
[V4.5-A4.5] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box 9/10 - Good but a little muted for the younger PG audience.


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