Big Hero 6 English Movie
"I'm Baymax, your personal healthcare assistant" says Baymax over and over again throughout the film. Baymax is a large inflatable robotic nurse with a 'huggable' personality. He has been programmed in a way that makes him incapable of hurting a human being. His job is to take care of any medical needs that you might possibly have, and also to make you all giggly and lovestruck with him, so that you could ignore any flaws that the film might have. Thankfully, the flaws are few and far between.
After years of lull, Disney Animation has been on a roll recently with Tangled, Wreck-It Ralph and last year's Frozen. Their golden run continues with Big Hero 6, an adaptation of a comic series by Marvel that follows a group of 5 ordinary teenagers and a robot who turn into crime fighters to protect people from unscrupulous villains.
The film acts as an origin story for the gang, who will surely return in sequels to fight crime again. But while most origin films are marked by directors trying too hard to establish base and shoving situations down your throat, directors Chris Williams and Don Hall let circumstances take their own course. They litter the film with recognizable characters and give them an understandable cause to fight for. You get the feeling that you've know the characters since before the film.
The film is probably the most action-packed animation film that you'll see, with chases, strikes and counter-strikes taking chances alternatively to get your adrenaline pumping. Couple that with probably the most gorgeous animation quality and there isn't a single moment that doesn't command your attention.
The film never takes the audience for granted. Knowing that the viewers today don't just consist of young children easily enamored by a few action scenes, it gives the adult viewers something to emotionally invest in. I mean, who doesn't get behind an old-fashioned revenge yarn? The story has a lot of heart, which is common for animation fare, but not so much for superhero films. Also unlike animated fare, there are a few surprising twists in the tales that keep the viewers on their toes. Then of course, there's the master-stroke Baymax, who's likely to be lapped up by the young and adults alike.
The only aspect of the film that doesn't work is the motivation of the villain. While understandable, it is also more cliche than the use of the word "cliche" and lacks any conviction whatsoever. Also unconvincing is the robotics genius of the 14 year old leader of the team, Hiro Hamada. He is shown to be smarter at building tech than all the others put together, but this fact is neither stated explicitly nor is it explained.
The voice cast may not be A-list, but animation doesn't really need that anyway. Ryan Potter as Hiro, Damon Wayans Jr as Wasabi, Jamie Chung as GoGo, T.J. Miller as Fred and Genesis Rodriguez as Honey Lemon are all charming, adding a lot to their characters through their voice acting. But the scene stealer, by design, is Scott Adsit as Baymax, with his semi- robotic voice that can invoke both laughter and tears with equal skill.
The fun-n-frolic begins before the movie has even started with the charming short film "Feast", and it continues till the very last scene of the film. Everything that comes in between is pure, unabashed entertainment, never mind your age. So snap on your 3D glasses (the least fun aspect of the film) and get ready for a joyride.
