Family Movie Night: Onward

We've started a new tradition in our house during this COVID-19 crisis, and that's a night where we gather and watch a movie the whole family can enjoy. Hence we call it Family Movie Night.

The films aren't limited to cartoons and traditional kid movies. My boy is eight, so he can get into a variety of films. But we started with Disney and Pixar's Onward, as it just hit streaming, and comes from a reliable brand.

Hands down, this is one of Pixar's best. It has humour everyone can enjoy, some vibrant animation, and a solid, fun and surprisingly emotional story. All things one expects from Pixar, only more so.

The world of Onward is much like our own, only with fantasy beings living in a world with vehicles, houses, phones and computers, because using them proved easier than conjuring their own special kind of magic.

However, Elvin teenage brothers Ian and Barley need to seek out some magic in order to spend one more day with their deceased father.

It's the quest -- and what Ian and Barley learn about themselves, the world and each other -- that gives Onward its, well, magic. These characters feel real because anyone can relate to them. And MCU veterans Chris Pratt and Tom Holland do such incredible voice work, I forgot I was watching animation... which never happens to me.

My wife and son enjoyed this as much as I did, and I swear I saw tears in their eyes toward the end. But not I. Real men don't cry.

...well, maybe a little.

This one's a Good, and I'm glad our COVID-19 world brought it home early for all to safely enjoy.

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