WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Soul, now available on Disney+.
Soul made waves as the first Black-led property on the Pixar slate, focusing on jazz musician and teacher, Joe (Jamie Foxx), as he tries to get his soul back into his body following an accident. And make no mistake, it paints a decent-enough picture of New York's jazz scene as it tries to produce something that isn't as vanilla as what is usually see in animation.
However, as good as the film is, Soul has one big flaw in that the audience doesn't really get the opportunity to connect to Joe's culture as a Black man.
There's something powerful about Joe being a Black teacher that isn't touched on. Joe's barbershop is an integral part of his journey as he takes on a cat's body, and it's there that he learns how he inspires Dez. The barbershop barely gets explored, though, which is unfortunate because so many Black stories flow through the same setting. Then, when Joe has to acclimate 22 to food, there's another missed opportunity to give her something from his culture, as opposed to generic fast food like pizza. A food cart, a recipe from his family back home or anything that people of color can relate to would have perfect in this moment.
Another issue is that the audience doesn't really see Joe teaching Black kids about music being an avenue out. Just hearing him, as someone still struggling to break into the business, discussing what music meant to Black culture and what Black culture means to music, would have been a poignant moment to inspire. There's just not enough of Joe as a person -- his sense of style, what Black musicians inspired him or other things to remind him of his true calling. Had the film provided more of his upbringing and family life, apart from flashing memories and the cliched story with his mom disapproving of his career, it would have painted a richer, nuanced journey prior to him going to the Great Before.
After all, this isn't a story about just Joe, it's about his people and how powerful and important they are to the entertainment industry and the wider world. Brief conversations, flashbacks and quickly speeding through the neighborhood just can't cut it because these aspects don't help to paint a clear picture of Joe's life. There is also some important context of what Joe wants for his future that was left out, and including it would've made up for the problematic angle of a non-Black soul piloting his body to learn life's important lessons.
Joe being a blue blob and then a cat feels like a disservice, not to mention there's a scene where another Black man's mistaken for Joe. These issues are why the emotional heft and overall resonance has a hard time registering when the film concludes. Sadly, in the end, Soul drops the ball with Joe, who could have been so much more.
Directed by Pete Docter and Kemp Powers, Soul stars Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Questlove, Phylicia Rashad, Daveed Diggs and Angela Bassett. The film is currently available on Disney+.