From the same Pixar Animation studios and director that brought you Disney’s Inside Out, Coco, and Up. Director Pete Docter has done it again, bringing Soul to your home screen. Soul is the first ever Pixar film to feature an African-American protagonist named Joe Gardner whose soul gets separated from his body after an accident, moments before his big break as a jazz musician. Well known actor and Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx plays the voice of Joe Gardener as well as Tina Fey who plays the voice of a lost soul. Soul also features other talented actors and actresses such as Phylicia Rashad, Questlove, Angela Bassett, and more. 

CinemaBlend critic Sean O’Connell stated “It’s vintage Pixar, and is guaranteed to be one of this year’s greatest films.” Another critic stated that Soul is “A music-filled celebration of life.”Soul maintained a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score of 100 percent  for about a month since the film’s first premiere in October 2020 at a London film festival. Soul still maintains an amazing score of 95 percent since the movie’s recent December 2020 release on Disney Plus. Perhaps you have children or young siblings of your own or maybe you just happen to be a sucker for animated films. Regardless, Soul is the movie that needs to be number one on your “must watch” list, and here’s why.

 When first clicking play on this film, you really won’t know what to expect. Even if you have seen trailers or read reviews, nothing will compare to the rollercoaster of emotions you’ll experience while watching Joe’s story play out. The creator and writer of Soul truly displayed a meaningful message all throughout this film with particular, yet creative word choice. Additionally, the format of each conversation between each character leaves the audience with a “wow” and many feelings of inspiration. Soul teaches us that in today’s society, it is important to recognize the small moments in life even though us humans can get caught up in everything that surrounds us. Small moments such as the first bite of a slice of cheese pizza, watching a petal from a tree fall down as the wind blows and catching it in your hand. Even moments like truly listening to those around you and asking questions about their own well being instead of always feeling the need to compete and share about yourself. These are all important moments that lost soul 22 shows us. Although this is a children’s movie, I am convinced this was written for young and older adults who may be feeling or have felt at some point overwhelmed when trying to figure out who and what they wanna be in life. That even if you’ve been chasing a certain goal or passion for years, that doesn’t ultimately determine who you are as a person. 

The film opens with Joe Gardner teaching his middle school jazz class in the beautiful city of New York. Joe demonstrates how something is supposed to sound for a student while then losing his own train of thought and getting lost in the music. He is then handed a decision to be promoted, although he seems to have doubts based on his own dreams of becoming a famous jazz musician. Joe is also then faced with one of his biggest gigs ever that could make or break his future. Would Joe actually throw it all away to be promoted at the school he teaches? After his unexpected accident, Joe ends up in The Great Before, where unborn souls are given their personality traits. Joe must realize what the true meaning of life is before it’s all gone. Soul is a must watch family movie, or even something to take on alone. Either way, bring a box of tissues.