In the 90s, Pixar impacted animated films. The creators and producers invested a lot in new animation technology, which would become the new standard for computer graphics. Even beyond the impressive advancement in technology, Pixar was also brilliant in storytelling.
They changed what family-friendly animated films looked and felt like by creating the most compelling stories with the most absurd ideas. Today, Pixar's reputation pales in comparison to its initial reviews. Looking back, there are some issues with their filmography that just don't make any sense. While the Pixar fandom is still holding strong, some critics are not impressed anymore.
8 Pixar Has Developed A Chase Scene Trope
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As much as fans love Pixar's talent for creating heartwarming stories, their films typically end with the main characters in hot pursuit, which at this point has become more of a trope than a plot device. While some scenarios call for a chase scene, the plot device should be used sparingly to avoid becoming a trait for critics to scorn.
The chase scene trope becomes an unsavory gimmick without the right buildup and originality. Pixar continues to rely on it to add energy to the ends of their films, and it's not one of their best decisions.
7 There's A Long Wait For Sequels
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Although a sequel film's announcement comes with much skepticism from fans, sequels are still highly anticipated. These secondary films aren't as common for Pixar, but when a sequel is in the works, fans have to endure long waiting periods.
It's true some films like Toy Story 3 and Monster's University benefited from the wait time since both films, which were centered around college, premiered when young fans were heading to college themselves. However, with the remaining sequels, the plot continued where it left off. To have to wait more than 10 years for that is pretty absurd.
6 Some Sequel Films Focus On The Secondary Protagonist
Time and again, mainstream storytellers attempt to overuse a popular side character by making a story completely centered around them. Normally this would result in complete failure, but Pixar somehow manages to carve out a good story. Of course, even Pixar sequels are rarely as good as their original films, except Toy Story 2.
Still, perhaps the success behind the Toy Story sequels has much to do with the creators' decision to focus on the right characters. Granted, some side characters have a story of their own to tell, but the best way to write their story is by building it with a balanced cast. The attempt to give a side character their solo act doesn't typically work out as well for Pixar.
5 Production Never Has A Tight Plan Put Together
In spite of how much Pixar's creators are praised as genius storytellers, they've admitted to never planning ahead for their films. They make their stories spontaneously as production ensues, which might be a resourceful way to focus on fewer details, but unfortunately, this strategy can result in a messy story.
Pixar has been very careful to work through any problems that arise in their story building, and while that's worked for many of their films, it isn't always practical.
4 There's A Massive Influx Of Plot Holes
When blinded by Pixar film magic, it may be hard to see their movies' faults. However, many fans have broken free of the company's charms and seen that most Pixar films have major plot holes. Once these plot holes are revealed, their respective films aren't as perfect as they might have appeared.
One major example of this is Buzz's contradicting motivations in Toy Story. While the concept of a toy that doesn't realize it's a toy is charming, it's a bit confusing when Buzz follows the rules of remaining still when humans are around. A more apparent plot hole is in Inside Out, where the main characters could have quickly resolved the issue of Riley's missing core memories by delivering them through the pipe system that was already present.
3 Pixar Has The Fastest Character Growth In Animation
Although it's not impossible for someone to change in a short period of time, there's merit in allowing fictional characters more time to grow. For whatever reason, Pixar minds typically build a plot with character development that unfolds over the course of a few days at most.
Perhaps this is their way of preventing their films from dragging on, but plenty of animated films like How To Train Your Dragon and Spirited Away manage to engage their audience with a plot that is told across several days, or even months. This is not to say that Pixar films are bad because the character growth is rather quick, but the creators might benefit from switching up this particular formula.
2 It's Unclear If The Movies Are Connected
Part of the fandom fun is coming up with theories, but with Pixar the fans are a bit out of control with one of the most disturbing theories out there. As Pixar's films were released over the years, fans took notice of the little Easter Eggs in each movie and decided that there must be a connection.
Within each new release, there would be a character or a reference to a former film, like a Nemo plush in Monster's Inc or the Pizza Planet Truck in most, if not all Pixar films. For decades fans have been weaving together a story of sentient animals and objects or the destruction of mankind and the environment. There is even an entire website dedicated to this fan made horror story, which is still highly debated to this day.
1 There's A Lack Of Female Leads
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Pixar has done a fantastic job of presenting healthy father-child relationships. However, there are many demographics they haven't represented. While the visual of a good father has been sorely needed, there is an equal, if not greater need, for compelling female leads. Pixar has already been criticized for its lack of female protagonists.
Though it may seem daunting for the male-led organization to take on more projects centered around a female's story, they ought to take a chance to work through it, as they have for every project they have done in the past. More than that, having more female creators involved may help if they haven't already done so.