Soul uses some of the themes Pixar has dealt with before, but plays them using different notes; creating something that feels new.

There is so much life and emotion, in both the words and the acting, that the staging seldom feels limited.

This isn’t merely a spin on a genre; it is a thoughtful character study that subtly tackles womanhood, motherhood and race.

Its production, structure and performances are all fantastic, making for an entertainment as alive as the classic that inspired it.

It is largely charming and its heavier themes, while occasionally being dealt with in a clumsy manner, are certainly not discarded.

It contains individual scenes that are compelling, but is largely unable to carry the tension over to its plotting and one major character.

While it is unlikely to change minds, it is an interesting look at a child who realized Earth is bigger than her and needs to be protected.

Due to the way it marries real-life terrors with things that go bump in the night, His House is compelling and surprisingly powerful.

It is a brutal satire, sometimes funny, sometimes offensive, that attempts to say that we are not as progressive as we like to believe.

An uneven production that has enjoyable high-points, but peaks in the middle, before building to a frustratingly dull final act.