When Disney bought Marvel in 2009, it was obvious that one of the results would be an animated movie, not just multi-million dollar blockbuster franchises. After all, when you have hundreds of characters at your disposal, you’re going to make a movie, no matter what the comic book purists say. This is where “Big Hero 6” comes in.
Based on the Marvel superhero comics of the same name, “Big Hero 6” tells the story of Hiro Hamada, a 14-year-old prodigy who’s so smart he can build his own robots. He lives in San Fransokyo with his aunt and with his brother Tadashi, who also builds robots.
Tadashi introduces Hiro to his friends, self-proclaimed “nerds” obsessed with science and technology: tough and daring Go Go Tomago, ebullient and brilliant Honey Lemon, enthusiastic science fanboy Fred, and organized rule-abider Wasabi. Along with the inflatable, huggable, always-helpful and unintentionally funny robot Baymax, Hiro and his friends embark on an adventure to become superheroes and save the city.
Let’s get the main thing out of the way first. This is an animated film, a Disney one at that, so a big reason to watch it is the quality of the animation. In this area, “Big Hero 6” is fantastic. The character design is the same excellence-imbued style found in Disney’s most recent films like “Frozen,” “Wreck-It Ralph” and “Tangled,” but unique enough that we don’t feel as if we’re watching rehashes of past characters. But the true visual star of the film is the city of San Fransokyo. All big cities have areas that are glistening and gleaming and areas that are gritty and grimy. “Big Hero 6” manages to portray both and still make you believe that it’s one place and not two. And the details are fantastic. The colors and architectural styles are the perfect blend of San Francisco and Tokyo. You can’t help but look away from the characters once in a while to take in the beauty of their city. It’s that amazing.
While the city is the visual star, the visual stunners are the flying sequences. Hiro and Baymax fly above the city and San Fransokyo’s own version of the Golden Gate Bridge in a heart-accelerating scene that leaves you wide-eyed with wonder. The loops and turns and falls are enough to either make you want to go skydiving or stay at ground level forever; either way, they make your heart soar. Lots of films have exciting flying sequences; this film’s is particularly similar to those in DreamWorks Animation’s two “How to Train Your Dragon” films, and having San Fransokyo as a background makes this ride worth the vertigo.
“Big Hero 6” is a superhero origin story, so it features the usual eye-popping action and enjoyable humor and even tear-inducing moments of gravitas and heroism. It has all the elements of a great superhero movie with a fun, scientific and artificial intelligence twist. Unfortunately, because it’s a great superhero movie, it also suffers from the genre’s flaw: predictability. It doesn’t take viewers long to figure out who the culprit is, and the plot points that catapult the plot and build suspense are all too familiar.
When it comes to superhero movies, we pretty much know the drill. Good will always defeat evil; tragedy will often be the start of tremendous character growth, and heartwarming moments will be followed by heartbreaking ones. But even though we know the formula backwards and forwards, we still watch them: we crave these moments and we want to see how those elements take shape with different characters, settings and superpowers. In this sense, “Big Hero 6” is spot on as it delivers everything the audience wants and doesn’t overload them with unnecessary story elements or loose ends. Sure, some scenes run a tad long in the middle, but they only serve to endear us to Baymax and Hiro and allow us to revel in the makings of a hero.
The true worth of a superhero movie isn’t the predictability in the story but how that story inspires us. “Big Hero 6” isn’t worth watching because it’s a superhero movie or because it’s a Disney movie or because it’s an action movie. It’s worth watching because it reminds us that we can all be heroes and that we should use our smarts and talents for good, never forgetting that helping others is the best way to honor those who have sacrificed themselves for others. In a world where many are pessimistic about what technology is doing to us, “Big Hero 6” reminds us that we have the choice to use technology for good and be heroes. It’s refreshing to see pure positivity and optimism on the big screen.
Overall, Disney’s first superhero film is a great package, even if we’ve seen it before: beautiful animation, fun characters, heartwarming scenes, fun action and a powerful but not heavy-handed message. Add the film’s amazing theme, “Immortals” by Fall Out Boy, and a fun post-credits scene that follows in the tradition of Marvel Easter eggs, and you have one fun ride.
