Soul (2020)

[AimingforYoko]

This is the Pixar movie I've been looking forward to.

Pete Docter's had a pretty good track record.

[Browncoat]

Count me in.

[Spartan Girl]

Me too. Things will have to be better by the time this comes out. I hope.

[AimingforYoko]

Soul pulled from theaters, Disney+ release on Christmas.

[Spartan Girl]

Goddammit. But at least we'll still get to see it on Disney+ for free. 

Hope Raya and the Last Dragon will make it to theaters.

[kiddo82]

Disney must really want an Oscar push for this one.  In theaters I could see this grossing a billion.

[Guest]

5 hours ago, kiddo82 said:

Disney must really want an Oscar push for this one.  In theaters I could see this grossing a billion.

I’m sure that plays a part but this is probably more about them running out of available slots in 2021. Soul was going to be big but not bigger than many of the movies they have planned for next year.  

[BetterButter]

 

[starri]

This is the New Yorker in me, but I actually sucked in my breath by how good Pixar's version of NYC looks.  This is the first time they've done a location that isn't stylized in some way, and it looks incredible.

[xaxat]

On 10/16/2020 at 8:49 PM, starri said:

This is the New Yorker in me, but I actually sucked in my breath by how good Pixar's version of NYC looks.  This is the first time they've done a location that isn't stylized in some way, and it looks incredible.

There's a shot were the souls are looking down on Manhattan and it's pretty much a 1 for 1 depiction of the city. Not only are the famous buildings (Chrysler, Empire State etc.) there, so are things like One Worldwide Plaza, Madison Square Garden and the buildings around it.

Edited October 19, 2020 by xaxat

[Kromm]

Disney Plused it. 

The animation is first rate. The representation is great. The acting fairly good. But a lot of it unexpectedly left me cold. Joe really DID cheat, as understandable as it is. The ending is a cheat. Even if he redeemed himself in terms of his questionable actions and motives earlier in the movie, his reward seemed the wrong ending to me.  Maybe they were afraid to make an ending where he was offered another chance at life and refused it. Maybe they were afraid that would be interpreted as pro suicide or something.  But the message of APPRECIATING the life you have (most personified by the Barber) got lost in Joe's realization of that being the excuse for everything. It made the ending "feel good" that he lives, but removes all possible gravitas from the ending. The famous Pixar tragicness may be a cliche, but this script would have had a hundred times the impact if a sacrifice was actually a sacrifice. 

[Jediknight]

Just got done with it, and holy moly, it is fantastic.

Good music, great performances from Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey, and absolutely gorgeous animation.  Seriously, that freaking animation, especially in the Great Beyond and Great Before.

[Spartan Girl]

It was brilliant! The animation was top notch, as usual, and even dabbled in the abstract this time! The best part was watching 22 and Joe drop to Earth and slowly release hands as she drifted away. That had the same gut punch as the dump scene in Toy Story 3.

When Terry trapped the wrong guy, it reminded me of the Sunken Place in Get Out. Pixar really went deep this time, exploring sparks vs purposes, what happens when a passion becomes obsession, what makes us the way we are, etc.

22’s mentor montage was hilarious. As was the “Why do you sound like a middle aged white lady?” “I just picked this voice because it annoys everybody.” HA! I don’t know if the writers added that in after Tins was cast, but well played.

I was fine with Joe getting a second chance at the end, the right way. We can all relate to wanting another chance to appreciate the little things we all took for granted and miss doing this year, and a lot people are never going to get that chance. Joe redeemed himself at the end, and so he earned it. I do wish we’d seen who 22 would become.

Pixar really did have the kind of movies we needed this year. Well done.

[starri]

I loved all of the Jerrys.

And how there honestly wasn't really an antagonist.

[MadyGirl1987]

Sweet movie. Perfect animation and great voice acting. Liked they differentiated between spark and purpose, even if I thought Joe’s conclusion was that his purpose was to teach, seeing him both with the trombone student and 22.

A cute touch was in the credits where, when they normally list the name of babies born during production, they had the section titled “Recent You Seminar Graduates.”

[AimingforYoko]

I knew most of the talent involved, but I didn't know Graham Norton(Moonwind) was in this.

I enjoyed this quite a bit, it was sweet and funny. Jamie and Tina bounced off of each other well. Not as good as Inside Out, but very close.

[Morrigan2575]

I was surprised that Joe got another shot. I expected it to end with him going to the beyond. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending but, other than that I really enjoyed it. The characters were fun and it was beautiful to watch.

[Browncoat]

Just finished watching, and I liked it a lot!  I liked that Joe got a second (third?) chance -- I actually expected him to go back, since he was in the zone at the end.  I guess if you leave the zone for the You Seminar, you can't go back to the zone?  

It did remind me a bit of The Phantom Tollbooth, in that Joe learned to appreciate the little things, and not to take the normal day-to-day for granted.  And maybe he learned to get to know people like his barber and his mother a little better, instead of taking them at face value.  

I did hope to see where 22 ended up (and whether or not she and Joe met again), but maybe it's better that we don't know.

The animation was spectacular, particularly the long shots of Manhattan.

I didn't see John Ratzenberger's name in the credits.  Has Pixar broken with tradition?  He's been in every other Pixar film!

[Kromm]

1 hour ago, Morrigan2575 said:

I was surprised that Joe got another shot. I expected it to end with him going to the beyond. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending but, other than that I really enjoyed it. The characters were fun and it was beautiful to watch.

Yeah, so far I seem to be a party of one in disliking the ending. It's still a very well made movie, I just think the ending limited it to being a fun, slightly inspiring movie instead of a deeply affecting one. Although to be such it wouldn't have just taken him going to The Great Beyond. There also needed to be a bit more tweaking so that by the end you got the idea that this was really 22s story, not Joe's. Then Joe's actions and fate would have meant more. 

Again, I still think this was a really good piece of work.  Just not MEMORABLE, like Pixar's best. 

[choclatechip45]

This was fantastic. Such a great movie and unfortunately good timing with everything going on. It might be the best movie I've seen since in awhile. 

[nomodrama]

Just watched this with my family and we enjoyed it. It was a good movie and I'll definitely re-watch it a bunch of times like I do with all Pixar movies (because: kids), but it definitely is not going to make my list of the top Pixar movies. 

I think Tina Fey and Jaime Foxx had a great camaraderie going with their characters but 22 is what made the movie enjoyable for me more than Joe did. There was a lot of seriousness in this and some very deep topics tackled, the film really needed the humor that was included and 22 is brought that. The line from the trailer about her making Mother Theresa cry made me laugh every time. 

Graham Norton was great as well, I'm a huge fan of his talk show and he did such a great job with his voice acting. I'm so happy that he is part of the Pixar family! 

[NUguy514]

4 hours ago, Kromm said:

There also needed to be a bit more tweaking so that by the end you got the idea that this was really 22s story, not Joe's. Then Joe's actions and fate would have meant more.

No, that would've been such a big mistake.  The optics of such a choice would've been beyond dreadful, and I don't think it would've made sense with the rest of the movie.  It was always Joe's story; 22 was the catalyst for Joe's epiphany.

I thought the film was wonderful.  I don't know that I think it's in my top tier of Pixar films, but I loved it.

[Sakura12]

I watched this and WW84 and I liked this movie so much more. 

This has the humor, the seriousness and the lessons of the Pixar movies that I love. Of course I was singing "I'm not throwing away my shot" from Hamilton for Joe. 

I kind of wanted to see where 22 ended up. Or if Joe would end up teaching them in the future without knowing it.

[cmahorror]

15 hours ago, Kromm said:

Yeah, so far I seem to be a party of one in disliking the ending. It's still a very well made movie, I just think the ending limited it to being a fun, slightly inspiring movie instead of a deeply affecting one. Although to be such it wouldn't have just taken him going to The Great Beyond. There also needed to be a bit more tweaking so that by the end you got the idea that this was really 22s story, not Joe's. Then Joe's actions and fate would have meant more. 

Can I join this party because the ending left me really cold too. I wanted Joe to realize that his purpose was teaching music, not becoming a jazz musician but being an inspiration for others and influencing a new generation to love music. We saw his influence with Curly and Connie, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. He would realize that he did complete his purpose and stay in the Great Before and be a mentor for new souls.

Instead we get a "happy ending" where it is implied that the teacher quits educating children to become a jazz musician and, as someone who is studying to be a teacher, I do not like the message that choice sends. Teaching a noble profession and to be treated as a second choice for anyone is not fair to the millions of teachers who have stepped up during this trying time to continue to educate our children. In addition, the arts are losing funding every day and many schools are cutting music programs, despite the documented link between the arts and the positive effective it has on learning.

I liked the film but that ending really bothered me. I expect Pixar to take more chances, to go beyond the typical ending, to show us that there are times we need to make tough choices and accept the consequences of those actions. Instead, Joe cheated the system and was rewarded for it.

[Morrigan2575]

47 minutes ago, cmahorror said:

We saw his influence with Curly and Connie, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. He would realize that he did complete his purpose and stay in the Great Before and be a mentor for new souls.

And 22.

I did think/expect that was the ending. It's one of the reasons why I wasn't thrilled with the ending. Looking back I do think it would have been a better ending if Joe died realizing that inspiring music/Jazz in others was his spark.

[AimingforYoko]

1 hour ago, cmahorror said:

We saw his influence with Curly and Connie, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. He would realize that he did complete his purpose and stay in the Great Before and be a mentor for new souls.

I think he will, eventually. When you realize how long eternity is, the stay on earth is pretty short.

[Sara2009]

I don’t think the ending necessarily implied that Joe quit teaching. I think it was ambiguous. IMO, the point was that he was going to enjoy every moment and not focus too much on one thing.

[arc]

I think it's very valid how unfulfilling Joe felt acing his first big break was, but I also think it would also an extremely valid choice for him to continue chasing his dream. It's not like he got to be a worldwide jazz superstar and then he found that hollow. He just did well at his first big gig. There's a lot more road after that! (not that it's altogether clear what he chooses, of course.)

On 10/16/2020 at 5:49 PM, starri said:

This is the first time they've done a location that isn't stylized in some way, and it looks incredible.

Inside Out's San Francisco was also quite legit, but it played a much, much smaller role in the story.

[starri]

7 hours ago, cmahorror said:

Can I join this party because the ending left me really cold too. I wanted Joe to realize that his purpose was teaching music, not becoming a jazz musician but being an inspiration for others and influencing a new generation to love music.

The way I read it was that he did.  Maybe I was just writing the story I wanted to see, but the vibe I had was that he was going to back to life as a music teacher, not chasing fame.

[nilyank]

I loved it and I really, really, really wished that I could have seen it on the big screen to get the full effect. Damn you 2020.

I think Joe realized his value of being a mentor (which he was great at), but I also don't think he has to give up his gig with the band. At least not yet.

Finally, even though 22 has graduated from the You, some other unborn soul has continue the habit of messing with the Knicks who are 0-2 so far this season.

[Guest]

On 12/25/2020 at 7:14 PM, Browncoat said:

I didn't see John Ratzenberger's name in the credits.  Has Pixar broken with tradition?  He's been in every other Pixar film!

He has a secret cameo. 

8 hours ago, cmahorror said:

Can I join this party because the ending left me really cold too. I wanted Joe to realize that his purpose was teaching music, not becoming a jazz musician but being an inspiration for others and influencing a new generation to love music. We saw his influence with Curly and Connie, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. He would realize that he did complete his purpose and stay in the Great Before and be a mentor for new souls.

Instead we get a "happy ending" where it is implied that the teacher quits educating children to become a jazz musician and, as someone who is studying to be a teacher, I do not like the message that choice sends. Teaching a noble profession and to be treated as a second choice for anyone is not fair to the millions of teachers who have stepped up during this trying time to continue to educate our children. In addition, the arts are losing funding every day and many schools are cutting music programs, despite the documented link between the arts and the positive effective it has on learning.

I liked the film but that ending really bothered me. I expect Pixar to take more chances, to go beyond the typical ending, to show us that there are times we need to make tough choices and accept the consequences of those actions. Instead, Joe cheated the system and was rewarded for it.

Why is the assumption that Joe quits teaching. I thought they left it wonderfully open ended for Joe. I loved the message that life isn’t about finding one singular purpose. Joe thought he was unfulfilled because he hadn’t had is big break when really he was unfulfilled because he wasn’t enjoying life. 

[Kromm]

12 hours ago, cmahorror said:

Can I join this party because the ending left me really cold too. I wanted Joe to realize that his purpose was teaching music, not becoming a jazz musician but being an inspiration for others and influencing a new generation to love music. We saw his influence with Curly and Connie, so it wouldn't have been a stretch. He would realize that he did complete his purpose and stay in the Great Before and be a mentor for new souls.

Instead we get a "happy ending" where it is implied that the teacher quits educating children to become a jazz musician and, as someone who is studying to be a teacher, I do not like the message that choice sends. Teaching a noble profession and to be treated as a second choice for anyone is not fair to the millions of teachers who have stepped up during this trying time to continue to educate our children. In addition, the arts are losing funding every day and many schools are cutting music programs, despite the documented link between the arts and the positive effective it has on learning.

I liked the film but that ending really bothered me. I expect Pixar to take more chances, to go beyond the typical ending, to show us that there are times we need to make tough choices and accept the consequences of those actions. Instead, Joe cheated the system and was rewarded for it.

 

11 hours ago, Morrigan2575 said:

And 22.

I did think/expect that was the ending. It's one of the reasons why I wasn't thrilled with the ending. Looking back I do think it would have been a better ending if Joe died realizing that inspiring music/Jazz in others was his spark.

I think it was for some reason left intentionally vague what Joe was going to do on his return. I had less of a problem with that then the reality that he cheated the system.  And it's not like his inspiration of 22 was so epic, so out of the box, that he deserved what nobody else did. After his initial wave of failures in The Great Before, after they reached Earth he wasn't even TRYING to teach 22 anymore.  She mostly just learned from a combination of his example and a few offhanded remarks that could have been delivered by most humans in the right place in the right time.  His contribution to her, other than the very ending where he persuaded her to stop being a lost soul, was him being a MacGuffin for her (which is part of why I said in an earlier post this might almost have worked better if it was eventually made clear this was 22s story and not his).  

There's a HUGE difference between the themes "appreciate what you got" and "appreciate what you have". More than is apparent from the one word change.  There's nothing wrong with either theme for a movie, but my uncertainty is about which was more appropriate here.  

[Kel Varnsen]

It is crazy, if you told me anytime before yesterday that Pixar would make 2 great movies about what happens after you die that are also completely different I probably wouldn't believe it. I remember reading an article before The Incredibles came out about how that was a big stretch at the time since it was their first movie that wasn't about miss-matched buddies who aren't people going on an adventure. Talk about how far they have come.

I like how it made me think about things. Like how Joe went to moving sidewalk to the great beyond before he was even dead. Like what happens if he was killed instantly?

I also thought it was interesting that he could probably be a Jazz musician and a teacher. Since the leader of the quartet said that they just do the same thing every night at the club and school is closed at night.

 

[cmahorror]

In theory, I don't mind the open ending. Maybe Joe did decide to remain a teacher or did private lessons on the side when he wasn't touring but I still don't like that he cheated the system and was rewarded for it. Joe didn't actively help 22 until the very end of the film - until then his only concern was getting his life back, not helping her. He didn't sacrifice his life for hers - he was not supposed to be alive. He had his time on Earth and now it was time for him to move on. Negating that fact because of one sacrifice just doesn't make sense to me. He could still have learned his lesson and used what he had learned to teach the new souls as they head out to their bodies. That ending isn't sad or dark to me, it is a logical conclusion to the story. As always, YMMV.

[Lebanna]

Joe had a steady gig at the club at 7pm and a job teaching band until like what? 2.30pm? Dude is clearly going to do both and I reckon there might be time in that schedule for something with Dorothea as well. She seemed like she’d be interesting company. Joe didn’t seem to have had a whole lot of friends.

People can do more than one job, and a lot more besides. 
 

I was really happy that Joe didn’t go to the great beyond or stay in the great before, because the whole point of the movie for me is that he was a middle aged man who hadn’t really lived yet. He almost did, but somewhere he stopped. That’s how he and 22 came to care about each other - they were both kind of in the same boat. I loved this movie like I loved ‘Picard’ this year - that message of, you know, you might not be young but there’s piles of time left to live the life you wanted if you just look up from your stuff and get out there and do new things.

That’s a message so many people need to hear, because the general message of so many stories is so often that if you didn’t make the right choices before a certain age, your life is basically over and you need to give up. And that message is such utter bollocks.

Edited December 27, 2020 by Lebanna

[nilyank]

2 hours ago, cmahorror said:

In theory, I don't mind the open ending. Maybe Joe did decide to remain a teacher or did private lessons on the side when he wasn't touring but I still don't like that he cheated the system and was rewarded for it. Joe didn't actively help 22 until the very end of the film - until then his only concern was getting his life back, not helping her. He didn't sacrifice his life for hers - he was not supposed to be alive. He had his time on Earth and now it was time for him to move on. Negating that fact because of one sacrifice just doesn't make sense to me. He could still have learned his lesson and used what he had learned to teach the new souls as they head out to their bodies. That ending isn't sad or dark to me, it is a logical conclusion to the story. As always, YMMV.

While he initially was trying to cheat the system, by the end, he was accepting into going into the great beyond. He realized that 22 got her spark because she actually got to live for those few hours, something that he has not really done despite his love for music. So he encouraged 22 to take the leap and go live her life because she earned her spark and he was at peace with what he thought was his last act.

Once mentors help graduate their unborn soul, they went into the great beyond. They didn't stick around to mentor some other soul. It is only if he failed with 22, would he have been given to another unborn soul

So when the Jerrys decided to give him another shot, he wasn't going to waste this opportunity and finally enjoy/live his life.

[cmahorror]

2 minutes ago, nilyank said:

Once mentors help graduate their unborn soul, they went into the great beyond. They didn't stick around to mentor some other soul. It is only if he failed with 22, would he have been given to another unborn soul

I don't think that was clear - he was told he was going to Great Beyond only after he had failed at getting 22 to spark. Because the rules are not given to us, we have no way of knowing if he could stay and mentor more souls. But even if that was true, if they could make the exception and send him back to Earth, why couldn't they make an exception and, because he cracked the toughest case, he was allowed to stay in the mentor position? To me, that makes much more sense than allowing him to return to Earth because of one good deed.

Again, I appreciate the open ending but I do not believe that Joe earned the ending he got. It would have been much more impactful to me if he had either stayed on as a mentor or accepted that, having finally been completely honest with his mother and achieved his dream of being chosen for a professional job as a jazz musician, he had accomplished what he wanted to and gone on to the Great Beyond. His returning to Earth was a little too pat and cliche "happy ending" for me. 

[Kel Varnsen]

6 hours ago, Lebanna said:

Joe had a steady gig at the club at 7pm and a job teaching band until like what? 2.30pm? Dude is clearly going to do both and I reckon there might be time in that schedule for something with Dorothea as well. She seemed like she’d be interesting company. Joe didn’t seem to have had a whole lot of friends.

People can do more than one job, and a lot more besides. 

I thought that is why it was kind of great that they used Jazz as the type of music. Because other than what seems like a small handful of performers, being a successful jazz musician is a much smaller scale thing than for a lot of other types of music. So getting a regular gig with a well known quartet in a popular NYC club is probably a pretty good level of success.

 

[Growsonwalls]

Well I watched this and thought it was beautiful. I think Soul is a bit like It's a Wonderful Life -- Joe didn't have to do anything amazing for 22, just as George Bailey doesn't have to do anything amazing either. The point is that very often it's the ordinary, not-amazing things that you do that inspire others. 

When Joe goes back to earth who knows what he'll do. That's open-ended. But I think the lesson is that he can just live an ordinary life of jazz musician/teacher and that's enough. 

I thought Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey were wonderful as the voices -- I was so into the movie I didn't even recognize them until I saw the credits.

As someone who teaches in NYC I also really appreciated the very DOE-like paystub Joe is presented with. It's so accurate. 

[Milburn Stone]

Was charmed by it. Just wanting to know if I'm the only one who found it a bit challenging to keep up with the cosmology of it all. I felt like I was constantly saying, "OK, so let me get this straight...A purpose and a spark are not the same thing because what again? And a spark is great unless it becomes too much and then it's OCD which is bad?" Anyone else?

One thing I like, ever since Pixar became part of Disney, is the subtle callbacks to Disney heritage. The abstract line drawing characters reminded me of Disney's modernist period in the forties and fifties. The boat captain reminded me of the Mad Hatter. Etc.

[Harvey]

On 12/27/2020 at 8:45 PM, cmahorror said:

His returning to Earth was a little too pat and cliche "happy ending" for me. 

It's a kid's movie first and foremost. I read theories about why Joe should have stayed dead. But. A large amount of people were already mad because "for once we had a cartoon protagonist who is black and yet he spent half the movie being a cat".  Now imagine if he also died in the end. The twitter social justice warrior would have a faux outrage festival over it and Pixar would have received lots of criticism.

[tennisgurl]

This was beautiful, I absolutely loved it. Rather serious and cerebral, but with some good comedic bits as well (JACKSON?!?) and I thought the message was really great. Its great to have passion and a purpose in life, but what really makes life wonderful are the little things. The whole "stop and smell the roses" thing is often seen as a trite cliché, but its also true. Joe realized that his single minded obsession with music and his dream of becoming a professional jazz player had led him to ignore so many great things or even really see the people around him, and it took watching 22 experience for the first time to realize how magical just going about your day can be. I also like the more subtle message that its never too late to learn and to change your life for the better. Just because Joe is middle aged doesn't mean he still cant try new things and learn to live again. 

The animation was amazing of course, because Pixar, and I love that they got to go for both detailed realism in New York and more abstract and artists in the Great Before. The Jerrys especially were wonderfully weird. Otherworldly but also very comforting. 

I know that the ending is going to be controversial, about whether or not Joe should have been able to get back to his life or if this ending was a cheat, but I thought it was a great ending and I feel like Joe dying would go against the spirit of the film and its love of life. The whole point is that you should never take life for granted and that its never too late to find happiness, and Joe getting a second chance is the best way to end a story about how great life can be when you take a second to enjoy it. I also like that they kept it ambiguous what he will do next. My guess is that he continues to play jazz at night and teaches during the day, having more appreciation for both his work at the school and playing his music, but we don't really know. Just that he will have a chance to really love life and all it has to offer now. It makes it even better that it came out on Christmas, even though it wasn't originally planned that way. What better Christmas gift can you give someone than a future? 

[Dancingjaneway]

I just finished this(I know I'm late) & it was fantastic. This movie just touched a place inside of me that I have long struggled with.  Not only is it beautifully animated but the story is just SO good. Just like in inside out where they talk about how all emotions are good to have this did a lovely job of showing how you can have a spark but it doesn't define you. If you have a passion for something that's great, but it's not what makes you, you. And even if you DON'T find that spark/passion you still deserve your life & to be on earth. I really think this movie is Oscar worthy. 

[SherriAnt]

I think was more for grown ups, which is great.

[Kromm]

On 1/7/2021 at 11:02 AM, Harvey said:

It's a kid's movie first and foremost. I read theories about why Joe should have stayed dead. But. A large amount of people were already mad because "for once we had a cartoon protagonist who is black and yet he spent half the movie being a cat".  Now imagine if he also died in the end. The twitter social justice warrior would have a faux outrage festival over it and Pixar would have received lots of criticism.

So are all Pixar movies kids movies?  Would that mean we have to take back/ edit out the heavy, dark parts of Inside Out, Up, Coco, Finding Nemo, and well... most of the others. 

[Guest]

6 minutes ago, Kromm said:

So are all Pixar movies kids movies?  Would that mean we have to take back/ edit out the heavy, dark parts of Inside Out, Up, Coco, Finding Nemo, and well... most of the others. 

Yes, absolutely. Why can’t kids movies have heavy, dark parts? Kids have to deal with heavy and dark things. Pixar makes movies that make heavy concepts approachable and understandable for kids. 

Do kid’s movies have to be exclusively for kids?

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Golden Globe nominations!

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE - Trent Reznor & Atticus Ross and Jon Batiste

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Critics' Choice Award nomination!

Best Score - Jon Batiste, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross

[shapeshifter]

Finally watched this and read or skimmed all the comments. 
I initially watched for Jon Batiste’s music, but really appreciated the deep, cerebral spirituality ——which is fitting for something Jon Batiste would choose to be a part of.

Having survived literally more than my share of near death experiences ——including at least one that left me questioning if it wouldn’t have been better if I had not survived—— I have zero problems with Joe surviving. From my perspective: why have a story about him at all unless it is about his survival? But that’s just my cat-with-nine-lives perspective. 
Heh. “Cat.”

But I also think it makes sense for a movie whose audience includes a lot of children to not have both messages about life’s purpose and about death. And not just for children. Having both would be, IMO, too complicated for an animated film to pull off. Maybe a series with two story arcs over 2 seasons ——but not all intermingled in one story. I mean: This is a story, not a biopic.

These days I am less inclined to re-watch shows and movies because there is so much to see. But I do intend to watch Soul again because I’m sure I didn’t get all the meaning-of-life Easter eggs hidden in there ——perhaps some only known to a few of the many many people credited in making this film. 

[Growsonwalls]

Maybe it's just the pandemic situation but I feel like I really needed that ending of Soul. I think the movie is rich and deep enough that the ending isn't just a maudlin tacked-on happy ending. Joe needed to know that he didn't do anything amazing with 22 but he still impacted 22 a lot. Enough to get a new lease on life. Also as a teacher I want to see movies where teachers get happy endings.