CARS (2006)
Film Review
It is with great pleasure that I present this written review of the film Cars. This spectacular Disney/Pixar film from 2006 takes place in a world without humans, where vehicles are the characters. It is the story of a famous and amazing race car named Lightning McQueen, who is competing for the Piston Cup and the lucrative sponsorship of Dinoco (an oil and gasoline company well known internationally in this film's universe) against other racers, but particularly against Chick Hicks and the King. After the first race ends in a three-way tie between the racers, McQueen and his truck driver, Mack, set off for California, where his tiebreaking race will take place in a week. However, McQueen's eagerness to get to California first leads him to make Mack drive through the night instead of letting him stop and rest. This causes Mack to drive in a drowsy state and accidentally lose McQueen on the road. With McQueen separated from Mack, the former starts looking for the latter, causing McQueen to get lost and find himself in an old and unknown town on Route 66 called Radiator Springs. Upon arriving, he accidentally ruins its main road, prompting the town's judge, Doc Hudson, and the rest of the townspeople to have him perform community service and fix the road, which can take around five days. Despite being frustrated about being stuck in Radiator Springs to fix the road, McQueen slowly learns important lessons during his days there as he experiences friendship and falls in love with someone while spending time with the townspeople, especially Sally, Mater, and Doc Hudson, who is actually an old racing legend with three Piston Cups. By the end of the film, after his tiebreaking race, McQueen learns to be a more honorable athlete and to have team spirit despite racing involving being alone on the road. This film has fascinating messages and music, and, as a film about racing with cars as the characters, there are many interesting points that can be learned by listening to the commentaries of the film's director, John Lasseter, and the short documentaries that I have watched that are included on the Blu-ray of this film.
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This film has a straightforward message. It is that a true accomplishment is having good people in your life: good friends, good people to help you with your challenges, and a good partner (boyfriend or girlfriend). This film shows us how having good people in our lives can have more value than prestigious awards like the Piston Cup or financial and commercial wealth like the sponsorship from Dinoco. First, we can learn from this film how people who solely aim for awards and financial and commercial wealth risk ending up as selfish and unlikable people. As we notice at the beginning of the film, both McQueen and Chick are eagerly trying to win the race in order to obtain the Piston Cup and Dinoco's sponsorship. As the main antagonist of the film, Chick is not only arrogant, but also cruel due to his aggressive way of racing. McQueen is not as arrogant as Chick, but he is negligent and disrespectful toward his teammates, such as how he pushes "Not Chuck" and company into quitting after the first race of the film. Second, this film can show us how having good people in our lives is a greater reward by allowing us to feel the joy and surprise McQueen experiences while spending quality time during his days in Radiator Springs. A first example of quality time is the tractor-tipping activity that Mater takes him to one night. With Mater becoming McQueen's best friend later, this scene can make viewers think of the fun times we can have with a good friend. With the amazing performance of Mater's voice actor, Larry the Cable Guy, Mater's friendly and adventurous side can help viewers enjoy this scene, with laughter from beginning to end and a small amount of suspense during the part where Mater and McQueen are chased by Frank. A second example of quality time is the drive that Sally invites McQueen to take with her. With Sally becoming McQueen's girlfriend later, this scene can make us think of meaningful times we spend with a special person. Thanks to the amazing music playing during their drive before they arrive at the Wheel Well Motel, "McQueen and Sally" by Randy Newman, we can feel the way both McQueen and Sally feel during their trip: adventurous, curious, and a little playful, mixed with flirting that leads to a few laughs. With emphasis from the same music, we can especially share McQueen's impression when he sees the overall impressive sights of the rocky bridge, the cliffs, and the waterfall. Near the end of the film, at the final race, we can share McQueen's admission that the good people in his life have become his greater reward through the following four examples. First, at the beginning of the race, he cannot stop thinking about his new friends from Radiator Springs and about being on a happy drive again with Sally. Second, with his new friends surprisingly present at the race to support him and help him as his new teammates, McQueen gets the motivation he needs to push forward and rightfully get ahead of the King and Chick. Third, despite still wanting to win the Piston Cup and Dinoco's sponsorship, having learned to care for others, McQueen becomes a more honorable athlete when he stops before he can win the race, lets Chick win, and goes back to help the King complete his final race after the latter has been badly injured by an aggressive hit from Chick. After the race, Tex, the owner of Dinoco, admires McQueen's ethical way of racing and, therefore, offers him the sponsorship instead of Chick despite Chick technically winning the race. However, McQueen politely declines the offer in order to stay with Rust-eze and his friends. With this final gesture, McQueen reciprocates their loyalty and devotion. Interestingly, at the beginning of the film, the King, the veteran racer who is McQueen's friendly adversary, tries to explain to McQueen the necessity of having good people around him and respecting them. However, during this part of the film, McQueen does not listen because he is completely focused on the glory he can obtain by being declared the winner of the race. Therefore, it is Doc Hudson, who later becomes McQueen's mentor and crew chief, who makes McQueen see the error in his ways. In the scene where Doc explains to McQueen why he no longer races, while also showing him the article about his crash in 1954, my understanding is that Doc was basically subjected to the attitude of people who just wanted to gain awards and wealth, such as the Piston Cup and Dinoco's sponsorship, making them consequently disloyal and selfish. Even though Doc had recovered from his crash and was ready to continue competing, his team had already permanently replaced him. The discovery that we are replaceable or merely a tool for the people we have been through a lot with can hurt more than a crash.
This film also has an exceptional soundtrack. It should be noted that one of the film's two Oscar nominations was for Best Achievement in Music Written for Motion Pictures, Original Song. It was specifically for the song "Our Town" by Randy Newman. This song plays during the flashback that explains how Radiator Springs went from a busy but happy town, with people always passing through it and asking for its services, to the forgotten and deserted town it is for most of the film due to the creation of the interstate not far from Route 66. The visuals of the flashback fit well with the words of the song, especially starting from the line "when the world caves in on you." It is at this moment that the inhabitants—Mater, Luigi, Flo, Ramone, and others—sadly realize that the new interstate has caused everyone to stop coming to their town. As the song's chorus begins to play, "Main Street isn't Main Street anymore," we can see the heartbreaking deterioration of the town as stores and buildings close down, except for the businesses of the characters we already know, such as Luigi's shop and Ramone's shop. The last few words of the song, "It's hard to find a reason left to stay, but it's our town, love it anyway. Come what may, it's our town," help indicate loyalty to the town as Mater, Luigi, and the others, despite feeling sad and defeated, are seen staying in the town and putting up signs saying that they are still open. This emotional song can effectively allow us to feel the sadness of the inhabitants of Radiator Springs when they realize that no one is coming to their town anymore and that they have been removed from the map. We can experience the same sadness again later in the film, when McQueen is taken away from Radiator Springs to compete in his final race in California. After he is taken away, the town goes from its lively and festive state back to its lifeless state. This time, instead of deteriorating, the town goes into darkness as Mater, Sally, and the others disappear into their homes (except for Doc), the lights turn off, and the traffic light turns back into a blinking yellow light. The slow piano version of “Our Town” playing during this part is the key element that truly makes this part similar to our earlier experience of watching the town’s flashback.
On a separate note regarding this film's soundtrack, listening to music in general can have several impacts on us. An exemplary impact is that it can remind us of good memories. An adventurous and musical film like "Cars" can have the same impact, despite being a film. For me, this film, thanks to its songs and instrumental music, reminds me not just of the film itself, but also of my younger days when I was watching this film on DVD or Blu-ray. As someone who can enjoy watching certain films and series more than once, I believe that the soundtrack from the film or series in question can stay in our minds as we go about our everyday lives. An example is the song "Life Is a Highway" by Rascal Flatts (originally by Tom Cochrane), which reminds me of small trips I remember taking with friends and family, in addition to McQueen and Mack's journey toward California. A second example is the music track mentioned earlier, "McQueen and Sally," during their drive to the Wheel Well Motel. The part where the music emphasizes McQueen's reaction to the impressive sights of the rocky bridge, the cliffs, and the waterfall can remind me of hikes and amazing views of forests and lakes I remember seeing in summer camps. A third and final example is the song "Find Yourself" by Brad Paisley. As the last song playing during the end credits, in addition to reminding me that this film is dedicated to Joe Ranft and of the general emotional note with which this film wants to close, this song can also remind me of emotional farewells I remember having with colleagues from summer camps when the camps were over and it was time for all of us to part ways and return home after spending weeks together. When this last song is playing during the end credits, it shows us a more or less quick recap of the film and focuses on the lesson McQueen has learned. Therefore, "Find Yourself" is also a song that can allow us to look back on an experience and acknowledge important things we have learned—not just awards we have earned, for example, but things that contributed to our growth, such as meeting new people, developing team spirit, or gaining a better perspective on winning and losing. This song can also allow us simply to look back at good and fun times we have had and remind us to live life to the fullest by doing fun activities with our friends and our partner and continuing to make fond memories for ourselves.
For this next point and the following one, I will be mentioning some interesting points I have learned from the commentaries of director John Lasseter and the short documentaries that were included on the film's Blu-ray. Lasseter mentions how this film is the most personal one he had created. First, he believed that with this film he was exhibiting a merger of both sides of his family. With his father having been a parts manager at a Chevrolet dealership and his mother having been an art teacher, Lasseter grew up really liking cars and drawing. Due to his deep interest in cars, Lasseter's wife told him that he should make this film not for car fans like himself, but for people who are not fans of cars. Therefore, Lasseter made this film about how "the journey in life is a reward," which is what Lasseter had personally learned during a trip he took with his family in a motor home in the summer of 2000. I am someone who is not a fan of cars, I don't watch races, and, comically, despite having a license, I don't even enjoy driving. Therefore, my own fondness for this film and considering it one of my top 10 favorite films of all time can prove that it does not take being a fan of cars to enjoy this spectacular film. Nonetheless, Lasseter and his team worked hard to make this film authentic, allowing us to enjoy it as a regular animated movie with comedy, adventure, and a good message, while also experiencing the world of racing. A fascinating aspect is the interesting cast of voice actors for this film. First, he cast professional and famous actors who contribute to this film's entertainment. A few examples are the following:
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Owen Wilson, who voices Lightning McQueen. The actor we may remember from, for example, "Wedding Crashers" (2005) and "Midnight in Paris" (2011), successfully plays the story's main character, who, despite needing to learn an important lesson, is still confident and impressive.
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Michael Keaton, who voices Chick Hicks. The actor we may remember as Batman or Beetlejuice plays a lively antagonist in this film.
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Tony Shalhoub, who voices Luigi. The actor from the series "Monk" (2002) plays a comical tire expert.
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Cheech Marin, who voices Ramone. Marin's voice was one I remember hearing since I was very young, with his performances in, for example, "The Lion King" (1994) as Banzai and "Oliver & Company" (1988) as Tito. I was very glad to meet him in person when I ran into him in France. For this film, he successfully plays an amusing painting expert.
Second, in order to help us experience the world of racing with this film, some of the voice actors are also experts in racing. From watching the short documentary "Real World Racing: Getting Geeky with the Details," we can see how, for example, the King is voiced by Richard Petty, a racing legend, and Darrell Cartrip, one of the announcers during McQueen's races, is voiced by Darrell Waltrip, a Fox broadcaster and also a racing legend. According to Lasseter, the realness within their voices is not an element that could have been reenacted. From listening to Lasseter's commentaries, I understood an example where he explains how, when the King is badly injured by Chick in the final race, he asked Richard Petty to voice his character in this part while thinking about an experience from his career in which he had injured his ribs. Personally, I admit that, when noticing the voices of characters like the King and Darrell Cartrip, not only do the voice actors successfully bring wise or entertaining characters to life, but they also help show these characters as authentic members of a specific community. Furthermore, I believe that Doc Hudson's voice actor, Paul Newman, was the full package. In addition to being an Oscar-winning actor, known for movies like "The Color of Money" (1986) and "The Verdict" (1982), who brings to life my favorite character in the film, he was also a race car driver, as mentioned on his IMDb page. The film's end credits mention that Newman was also credited as a Special Racing Consultant. It's amazing to have professionals like Newman contribute not only to this film's entertainment, but also to the opportunity for viewers to experience the racing world. Before watching this film's end credits, I already knew that the actor John Ratzenberger, surprisingly, has a role in each feature film by Disney/Pixar (at least up to 'Cars'). He voices Hamm in "Toy Story" (1995) (the first and second films), P.T. Flea in "A Bug's Life" (1998), the Abominable Snowman in "Monsters, Inc." (2001), Fish School in "Finding Nemo" (2003), and the Underminer in "The Incredibles" (2004). For "Cars," he voices Mack, along with the car versions of the characters he played in previous Disney/Pixar movies shown during the end credits. As we know, this film directly and comically explains this to us in the end credits during the part at the drive-in theater by showing car versions of previous films by Disney/Pixar in which the characters Ratzenberger had played are shown. The revelation can be obvious when, just after the speaking appearance of Ratzenberger's character from an old Disney/Pixar movie in car version, Mack, who is in the audience at the drive-in theater, expresses a reaction toward the character. In Lasseter's commentaries, we can learn that Ratzenberger is actually "Pixar's good luck charm." The reason why he voices a Mack truck is because, according to Lasseter's commentaries, Ratzenberger's father was a driver of Mack trucks. Therefore, having Ratzenberger voice a Mack truck in this film was a way to honor his father.
I believe that, in order for a work to be well done, it is necessary for the worker to take his or her time, which may require slowing down. Every time I hear people say how we must speed up to get a work done or how I shouldn't be too detail-oriented, I think that the person values quantity over quality or that the main importance is simply to beat the clock. "Cars" shows perfect examples of this. A first example is during the first race at the beginning of the film, where McQueen asks "Not Chuck" and company to only give him gas and not change his tires, which they seriously disapprove of. Even though McQueen's decision not to change his tires allows him to get ahead of the King and Chick and would have made him win the race, "Not Chuck" and company are right to disapprove of McQueen's decision since it clearly backfires when McQueen's two back tires pop before he can reach the finish line, slowing him down and causing him to finish the race in a draw with the King and Chick. Another example is when McQueen quickly gets the road he damaged in Radiator Springs fixed just to "finish" the work, get it out of the way, and go to California. This also backfires on McQueen when Doc tells him that he is supposed to fix the road and that the work he did actually made it worse, forcing McQueen to undo the bad work he did and start over. These two examples can also show us how shortcuts can be tempting to take, such as quickly moving through a step or skipping it altogether, but they do not necessarily make them the "right" roads to take. In Lasseter's commentaries, he mentions how the part where McQueen quickly but badly finishes painting the road "is a metaphor for the whole film," where moving slowly and taking your time can allow your work to be well done. In the short documentary "Real World Racing: Getting Geeky with the Details," we can learn about how Lasseter was detail-oriented about making an amazing final product with this film, such as choosing the colors of the car characters and showing the races the way we would see them on TV, which explains why he met with a Fox Sports director. While Lasseter is passionate about cars and racing, and it is also because of this that he was meticulous about the details for a movie about cars and racing, I greatly respect this way of thinking and working, as this is also the right way for a filmmaker to work and think. As a filmmaker myself, I value taking my time to properly complete a film and making sure that everything is well done within it, such as avoiding continuity errors or anything that would cause confusion for viewers, like showing people swimming in the beach's water if the intention is to show an empty seashore on a desert island. Jay Ward, the art coordinator of "Cars," said at the end of the same short documentary that they ensure the correctness of whatever they do for their films and that it will "stand up."
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Disney/Pixar's "Cars" is among my top 10 favorite films of all time and my favorite film from Disney/Pixar. "Cars" was released in the year that celebrated 20 years since the founding of Pixar in 1986, which explains why the Pixar logo mentions "Celebrating 20 Years" at the beginning of the film. Today, in 2026, I am happy to write this review to mark this film's 20th anniversary and the 40th anniversary of Pixar's founding. Not only is "Cars" enjoyable, but it can also help us enjoy life thanks to its memorable soundtrack. The other Oscar nomination this film received was for director John Lasseter for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year. Despite not winning the Oscar, I believe that "Cars" deserved it, recalling this film's craftsmanship and my own very high regard for it. Nonetheless, this is not to say that the film that earned the Oscar, "Happy Feet" (2006), was undeserving. After watching the behind-the-scenes documentaries and listening to Lasseter's commentaries, I am proud to consider "Cars" among my top 10 favorite films of all time and my favorite film from Disney/Pixar, since I share a lot of Lasseter's way of thinking. He made this film to tell us how the journey of life is a reward in itself, which he learned from a trip he took with his family. My understanding of the film—that having good people in your life and enjoying quality time with them are rewards greater than trophies or commercial wealth—is similar to Lasseter's intention with this film. When we enjoy the moment, one of the things we can acknowledge is the people we are enjoying it with and/or the people who are there for us: our friends and family. Enjoying life through fun times or lessons that helped us grow gives us experiences that we can look back on fondly. We can find ourselves thinking about the people we had those certain experiences with, and we can think about the places where those experiences happened. All these things can cause us to proudly tell ourselves that we haven't just worked—we lived.
Review by Dean Attari
Dean Attari reviewing Disney/Pixar's "Cars"
Dean Attari and Cheech Marin (voice actor of Ramone in "Cars") during their chance encounter in France, 2023