(spoiler free)
Sound the ba-boing, another Netflix Original is out. This recent streamer is an animation from Kevin R. Adams and Joe Ksander; who have turned their hands from short films and being layout artists/visual effects supervisors respectively, to a full-length feature, which is stuffed with a high-tech stamina that only marginally runs out of steam.
The story is set in the future, where Mai (Charlyne Yi) feels unnoticed by her mother and resents the coexisting nature of robots and humans that surround her. At a popular convention Mai stumbles upon a secret robot creation which becomes her friend and protector. 7723 (John Krasinski) is happy making memories but a price may be paid for his new pal and it comes at a dangerous time as a swarm of new robots may rise up.
This animated science fiction flick may be extremely predictable in a lot of places but the story-line isn’t damaged by this run of expectations. This is a film which houses a lot of ideas and a healthy proportion of them work well. A plot section about making memories and the subsequent dilemma of what to keep is a really winning touch, as are the darker edges that rocket alongside the main narrative between Mai and 7723.
From the outside appearance and judging a book by its cover, ‘Next Gen’ with it’s poster and brief Netflix synopsis looks like a poor persons ‘Big Hero 6’ and though it does start like a cheap mirror of the Disney feature, it swiftly moves away from that and becomes its own thing which is a relief. The animation by all involved is crisp and gorgeous; it may submit the usual eyes like dinner plates cartoon style and futuristic city-scape but there’s plenty of great detail to make this movie feel fresh and exciting enough to sustain our interest.
Ksander and Adams lump a bit too much anger to the purple haired leading lass, which does make it hard to root for her at times. There’s also an unreasonable amount of hinting at bad language mostly in the case of a swearing dog. Aside from the cursing and the more one sided robot/human relationship on show, their screenplay for this family friendly sci-fi outing is engaging and permeated with strong humour; the robotics that populate the city from sassy mailboxes to sentient noodle bowls all create a funny stamp of identity for this world we’re watching.
‘Next Gen’ is a far more satisfying and watchable treat then I anticipated. There is a lot going on and some aspects may fail to reach the directors’ ambitious heights but the majority of this Netflix title is a visual delight.
Written by Troy Balmayer
Rating – 6.5/10
Question: What is your favourite animated film of the year so far?
(Leave your answers in the comments section below!)
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