Maiyumi reviews the latest blockbuster Big Hero 6…

Big Hero 6, directed by Don Hall and Chris Williams, is a film many of us have been aching to see since viewing the trailer. Following the worldwide success of Frozen (2013), Disney has yet again created a wonderfully funny and emotional film in the form of 5 wannabe superheroes and a robot. For this review spoilers are minor/limited to what is revealed in trailers, for example Hiro’s brother’s demise.

Since Disney purchased Marvel, there hasn’t been a real collaboration when it came to films; so far Disney has stuck with what they know, and Marvel have been working on those big budget live action films. So when Big Hero 6 was announced I was a bit sceptical, now we know Disney never sticks to the original story with their fairy tales, so why should they follow the Big Hero 6 comic? They didn’t even keep the protagonist’s name (Hiro Hamada from the film is actually Hiro Takachiho). However I personally haven’t heard much about Big Hero 6 and the comic series, so I suppose the series could have done with a reboot and Disney have done a fantastic job of it.

The story begins by establishing the relationship between the two brothers, troubled younger brother taking the easy way in life, and his older, more responsible brother showing him how to open up his mind and to develop his gift. The relationship with the two brothers is a great one, Tadashi is able to make Hiro see how much he can accomplish without needing to tell him he knows best, Tadashi shows Hiro his lab and that’s all Hiro needed. Early on it is also established that the brother share a strong bond between them since the death of their parents (Now it wouldn’t be a Disney film without dead or missing parents now would it?). After the school is partially destroyed by a fire, Hiro sets it upon himself to find ‘the man in the kabuki mask’ who he believes started the fire, which killed Tadashi. He starts a superhero group using the projects in his brother’s lab. Including Baymax, his brother’s robot in the group lineup.

Now for the characters, the film’s main protagonist is Hiro Hamada, a 14-year-old robotics genius, who prefers to partake in Disney’s version of Robot Wars, then to actually use his gifts. Unlike his brother Tadashi who is also a robotics genius, his mostly spends his time getting his brother out of trouble and spends his time at his ‘Nerd school’ as Hiro puts it. Both the brothers live with their Aunt Cass after the death of their parents. It isn’t until Tadashi takes Hiro on a trip to his lab, that he meets Tadashi’s friends and sees for himself all the amazing work they accomplish at ‘Nerd school’. Now none of Tadashi’s friends are typical science geeks. Honey Lemon is a tall, pretty woman who loves anything girly, she gets excited when she is able to paint her project pink. The bubbly character in the group she comes across sweet and caring, especially with Hiro. GoGo Tamago, the rebel she isn’t excited unless she is going fast and ‘breaking traffic laws’ according to Wasabi, the ultra conscious driver of the group. Not much can be said for her personality until nearer the end of the film when she confronts Hiro, but through out she remains calm and cool. Now Wasabi is tall, dark with broad shoulders, he has what looks like to be OCD when it comes to tools in his lab, and he’s so conscious of consequences, even in car chases he stops at traffic lights. I found myself laughing out loud more with Wasabi than any other characters (or should I say human characters?). Now there is Fred, Fred is the school mascot and pretty much stays the same for the entire film, he is the mascot for the school and the superhero team. (Fun fact he is voiced  by the recognisable T.J Miller aka Tuffnut in How to Train Your Dragon, 2010). For this character I would recommend staying in the cinema until after the credits, after all it still is Marvel, stay seated for an extra scene with Fred. Lastly Baymax, now Baymax is a robot created by Tadashi for the purpose of medical use. He is mostly a large marshmallow looking robot with a monitor on his stomach. I must say Baymax was absolutely hilarious; he had just the right thing to say and the most inappropriate time, and towards the end, this robot was able to stir the audience’s emotions, which would be difficult for a robot, who I would assume doesn’t have any (wasn’t mentioned that he was programmed with any). The bond that Hiro and Baymax relationship develops through out the film and was quite emotional and very entertaining to watch.

Over all the film itself was enjoyable to watch and I would defiantly recommend it to anyone. The animation itself was smooth and the character designs themselves were really suited to each individual. Now I have to talk about the city the film is set in, San Fransokyo a combination of San Francisco and Tokyo, I found myself looking at the buildings in the background through out the film. The designs were fantastic, a perfect balance of Western and Asian style while still looking very modern. It was defiantly a city I would love to live in. So in conclusion if you are on the fence about this film, I would highly recommend everyone to see this film, its one the whole family can watch and enjoy.