The Hindu Business Line : Toon thrills on four wheels

Fuelled with plenty of humour, action, drama, and amazing new technical feats, `Cars' is said to be a high-octane delight for moviegoers of all ages

Genre: Animation
Director: John Lasseter
Producer: Darla K. Anderson
Voice Talent: Paul Newman, Owen Wilson, Bonnie Hunt, Richard Petty and "Larry the Cable Guy."
Cars India release date: August 4

For us car-crazed `petrol-heads' anything that even remotely resembles a car will be of interest even if it is from the other world — the world of toons.

Surprised! So were we, when we first laid our eyes on the promos for a new, upcoming movie on our favourite subject. And that was enough to make it to these pages.

We were surprised with the richness of detail, the choice of the people behind the characters and the best of all, many of the cars are ones that we are all familiar with and exist in the real world too. But then again we have come to expect surprises every time that there is a movie from Pixar Animation Studios.

So, what are we talking about?

Cars is the new movie from Walt Disney Pictures and Pixar Animation Studios. After taking moviegoers magically into the realm of toys, bugs, monsters, fishes, and superheroes, the masterful storytellers, animation artists and technical wizards at Pixar Animation Studios, creators of movies such as The Incredibles, Finding Nemo and Monsters, Inc., join hands again with Academy Award-winning Director John Lasseter to hit the road with a fast-paced comedy adventure set inside the world of cars.

The story revolves around Lightning McQueen (voice of actor Owen Wilson), a hotshot rookie race car driven to succeed. He discovers that life is about the journey, not the finish line, when he finds himself unexpectedly detoured in the sleepy Route 66 town of Radiator Springs, an imaginary place set in the US Mid-West.

On route across the country to the big Piston Cup Championship in California to compete against two seasoned pros, McQueen gets to know the town's offbeat characters — including Sally (a snazzy 2002 Porsche voiced over by actress Bonnie Hunt), Doc Hudson (a 1951 Hudson Hornet with a mysterious past, voiced by the legendary Paul Newman), and Mater (a rusty, but trusty tow truck voiced by Larry the Cable Guy) — who help him realise that there are more important things than trophies, fame and sponsorship.

The all-star vocal cast also includes freewheeling performances by racing legend Richard Petty and Cheech Marin. As has been Pixar's trademark, the characters in Cars also assume the features and personality of the real person voicing over for them. Fuelled with plenty of humour, action, heartfelt drama, and amazing new technical feats, Cars is said to be a high-octane delight for moviegoers of all ages.

Another highlight of the movie is the fact that there are no humans. It is simply a world of cars lived by cars and so the audience cheering the race cars at the Nascar rally are all... cars. For us car-crazy folks there is a lot of auto-talk and the chance to see cars that we have seen in real life come to life including a 1975 Cadillac Coupe de Ville, a 1959 Chevrolet Impala Lowrider and a 1942 World War II Willy Army jeep.

Of course, there are a few modern day cars too such as the 2002 Porsche 911 Carrera and a GM Hummer.

All of Pixar's previous movies have left an indelible image in the minds of moviegoers.

So, much so that we can never look at another clown fish without being reminded of Nemo's antics or for that matter look at an ant or caterpillar and wonder if they really could be talking amongst themselves.

Cars is expected to build a similar aura around the automobile. Disney and Pixar promise a rollicking ride like never before for car aficionados.

They also promise that you will never look at your car in the same light again — as a lifeless machine only capable of going from one place to another.