I like what this movie is trying to be, but it’s so committed to gags, a breakneck pace, and a certain amount of self-defeating essentialism that I don’t think it ever gets there.

Lots to love in this movie: The animation is gorgeous, the concept is interesting, the metaphors are well-meaning, and there are plenty of funny bits. There seemed to be too many subplots, though, and when any of them saw a shake-up, it didn’t always feel deserved. It also feels essentialist in the way that D&D does—yes, differences make sense in the fictional world, but since we’re meant to read them onto the real world, it doesn’t always sit right. There are also bits that go unexplained or that don’t hold up to much thinking. I get that it’s a Pixar movie, but they still bugged me when I sat to think about it. I enjoyed it and would watch it again, but it seems like it was an excuse to do some cool animation and that the rest of the movie suffers from it.

Good article on an important subject. I may have to assign this to my students next semester!

Pour un album censé être féministe, il y a bien trop d’essentialisme dans Mesdames de Grand Corps Malade.