Cars 2
Year: 2011
Rating: G
Length: 106 minutes / 1.35 hours
If anyone asks me for my unpopular movie opinion, they’re likely going to hear that I think Cars 2 (2011) is the best entry in the Cars trilogy. While it still doesn’t hold a candle to the superior works that Pixar released before it, Cars 2 took a risk by adapting the spy genre to its kid-friendly films. I was never much of a fan of NASCAR-style racing, so pushing these characters into worldwide Grand Prix races felt much more exciting to me. Still, I can see why some didn’t like this pivot.
As with most of the Cars movies, I never cared much for Mater (Larry the Cable Guy). The forced comedic relief always felt like it was based on how cringe-worthy they could make the character. Unfortunately, Mater had a much larger role in this movie, which only marginally worked because of how it felt like The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997). Despite this, there were a lot of new characters in this film that felt well-rounded and meant for the “adult jokes” the kids wouldn’t quite get (for example, Finn McMissile (Michael Caine) being the car James Bond normally drives).
Plot-wise, Cars 2 has a lot going for it. After only having raced in NASCAR races, Lightning McQueen (Owen Wilson) had to contend with other racers who could easily outpace him, thus providing room for some character growth. Contrasted with all this, we have the “spy” plot that introduces the concept of lemons into the Cars universe. Expanding the idea of sentient cars outside the small town setting of Cars (2006) made the franchise feel more grounded in its extrapolation of the concept. After all, cars aren’t exclusively an American thing, despite what our car-centric infrastructure might have you believe.
Building up the Cars lore while riffing on the spy genre, I give Cars 2 4.0 stars out of 5.
