It’s 2002 in Toronto, and pre-teen girls everywhere are swooning to the sounds of Canadian boy band 4*TOWN. That’s the world as depicted in Pixar’s 2022 film Turning Red, one of the studio’s more successful recent efforts.
One of the things Turning Red does best is capture the look and sound of an early-00s boy band. They tapped two songwriters who were little kids in 2002, Billie Eilish and brother Finneas O’Connell, but the duo proved more than capable of channeling the era.
Continuing my look at the movies of 2022 that did not make my top ten list, today I’m giving a little love to the year in animation.
I missed a couple of the higher profile releases — namely, Minions: The Rise of Gru and The Bad Guys — but I did manage to catch a nice selection of animated films, including all of the Oscar nominees.
In addition to the wide range of themes and stories explored in these films, I was particularly impressed with the variety of animation styles. Those who dismiss these movies as “cartoons” are missing out on some of the most creative and visually impressive cinema around.
Meet Me In Montauk 