# "Cars" -- Can Pixar do it again? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 3, 2006, 9:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313 "2006-06-03T21:09:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 6:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/41 "2006-06-04T18:27:31Z")
[QUOTE=Equipoise] Oh, sorry. Since I can’t edit my post, pretend I said “…or find them boring, unfunny, predictable and entirely forgettable.” There. Now get off my planet. … Ok, don’t Pit me, but GEEZ! Smeghead might be an ogre not worth salvaging, [/QUOTE] Um…no. I assure you you’re way off in your characterization of me here, but it’s not worth a hijack, so I’ll leave it at that. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/42 "2006-06-04T18:31:32Z")
Perhaps I have muddled the Dreamworks stuff with the Pixar stuff, as I did in the beginning. It’s been a long time since I saw Toy Story, so I couldn’t point out specifics, but the situations provided suffice. To each their own, I suppose. I most likely won’t be seeing any of the Pixar films I’ve missed. They’d have to come on late at night and there’d have to be nothing else on. Now that I think of it, I think I saw a little bit A Bug’s Life. Maybe it was Antz. Don’t know. My knowledge of the rest of the Pixar movies comes from reviews I’ve heard from said movies. Perhaps I’ve mixed Pixar with Dreamworks. Still, that’s a distinction in which I see little difference. Ah yes, **Equipoise**. I won’t Pit you, but then again, I wouldn’t pit anyone on this board. Different strokes for different folks, I suppose. ---
**Author:** ![furlibusea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@furlibusea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furlibusea)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/43 "2006-06-04T19:16:35Z")
I am sorry LOUNE but you do not know what you are talking about, and I suggest you quit digging, before you look any more like an adolescent poser than you already do. Frankly, the “mea culpa I was wrong but I stand by my word” you just did was pretty weak. By the way, so you know, ANTZ is an incredibly lame animated Woodie Allen movie, which I had finally mostly managed to get out of my head. Thanks for bringing it back up. A Bug’s Life is a remake of The Seventh Samari. Somehow they are a bit different, although I think the timing of ANTZ was to try to directly compete with A Bug’s Life. I think Iwould put my favorites this way Incredibles. Finding Nemo Toy Story 2 Toy story A Bug’s Life Monster’s Inc. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/44 "2006-06-04T19:35:03Z")
That’s kind of the problem. I’m not an adolescent poser. I just don’t dig the movies as much as you respondents seem to. Awful lot of defensiveness for a tiny thing, isn’t it? ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/45 "2006-06-04T19:46:58Z")
[QUOTE=Rodgers01] ☹ Not having seen it, I’ll preemptively say that this is by far the worst part of the movie. The American obsession with cars has (IMHO) already been so detrimental in so many ways; did they really have to fan the flames? [/QUOTE] Not all cars, just those of the '50s & '60s. You know, the sort of cars that travelled Route 66–which was the original title of _Cars_ but Pixar was afraid that audiences would confuse it with the old TV series. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/46 "2006-06-04T20:38:23Z")
[QUOTE=flodnak] I don’t want to pile on, **LOUNE,** but it sounds like you _have_ seen the original “Toy Story”. Could you please tell me what some of these “adult jokes” are? [/QUOTE] Rather than adult jokes (although those are there as well) the Pixar and Dreamworks films at their best manage to appeal to parents on a completely separate level than they do to children. Finding Nemo, for instance, is partly about letting your children go out on their own as they grow up. And in Toy Story 2, Woody has to decide whether it’s better to be untouched in a museum exhibit (and live forever) or be played with and loved by a child, but get worn. Basically, it’s a debate on how to live one’s life. And Shrek 2 is about in-law issues, which many people can relate to. ---
**Author:** ![Kiros](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/439d5e/32.png) [@Kiros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kiros)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/47 "2006-06-04T21:02:59Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] My knowledge of the rest of the Pixar movies comes from reviews I’ve heard from said movies. Perhaps I’ve mixed Pixar with Dreamworks. Still, that’s a distinction in which I see little difference. [/QUOTE] I think this is the biggest reason you’re getting into trouble with this thread. That’s sort of like saying “Perhaps I’ve mixed Dickens with Dan Brown”, because they both write books. The medium has nothing to do with the quality of the movies; Pixar movies are near-universally hailed as good _movies_, while Dreamworks flicks are much more hit-and-miss. The only similarities between the two are that they are kid-friendly and animated, neither of which has anything to do with content. Now, these last few sentences have been repeated by others earlier in this topic. However, what’s getting you into trouble is the quoted reply, where you’re basically saying “Even if Dickens and Brown are different, I don’t think it matters”. Which is such a patently absurd statement that… well, it’s getting you into trouble. For the record, I was unimpressed by A Bug’s Life, never saw Toy Story 2… but loved the others, particularly The Incredibles (even though I am pretty prejudiced against the superhero genre in general). Not REALLY looking forward to Cars because the subject matter doesn’t interest me… but neither did the Incredibles, so I’ll likely be out there seeing Cars one of these weekends anyways. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/48 "2006-06-04T22:23:28Z")
But that’s also the problem. I’m not drawing a giant difference between Pixar and Dreamworks. My detractors are drawing a difference. Pixar is “Disney”, Dreamworks is Disney-run. We’re struggling with defining our terms. As far as I’m concerned, there’s no reason to separate them. If someone wishes to, have at it. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/49 "2006-06-04T22:38:36Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] But that’s also the problem. I’m not drawing a giant difference between Pixar and Dreamworks. My detractors are drawing a difference. Pixar is “Disney”, Dreamworks is Disney-run. [/QUOTE] Huh? Pixar was an independent studio that had a distribution deal with Disney until the buy last month and it’s questionable about who really bought who when you look at it anyway. DreamWorks Animation formed by a merger with PDI and then was spun off of DreamWorks. DreamWorks Animation has a distribution deal with Paramount, but I don’t think they’re owned by Viacom. ---
**Author:** ![Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e480ec/32.png) [@Least\_Original\_User\_Name\_Ever](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Least_Original_User_Name_Ever)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/50 "2006-06-04T22:43:48Z")
I was always under the assumption that Dreamworks was a Disney extension. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/51 "2006-06-04T22:49:23Z")
_Dreamworks_ is Spielberg, Katzenberg, and Geffen. Originally independent, but now a part of Paramount. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/52 "2006-06-04T22:52:29Z")
Oops. Didn’t need to say that. It’s sad that people get Pixar and Dreamworks confused. And not to mention Blue Sky, who made _Ice Age_ and _Robots_. In many people’s eyes, they all blur into one. That sucks. ---
**Author:** ![Push\_You\_Down](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/push_you_down/32/9095_2.png) [@Push\_You\_Down](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Push_You_Down)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/53 "2006-06-04T22:53:07Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] I was always under the assumption that Dreamworks was a Disney extension. [/QUOTE] Whew… you really need to stop doing that because you are basically the poster boy for “ass out of you and me”. this thread is just getting uncomfortable. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/54 "2006-06-04T22:57:22Z")
> [@](#): > > Mr. Potato head calls the hockey puck a “hockeypuck.” Refreshing to know that I’m still a kid, because this one is apparently too adult for me. How is calling a hockey puck a hockey puck a joke? ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 10:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/55 "2006-06-04T22:58:31Z")
[QUOTE=GuanoLad] Oops. Didn’t need to say that. It’s sad that people get Pixar and Dreamworks confused. And not to mention Blue Sky, who made _Ice Age_ and _Robots_. In many people’s eyes, they all blur into one. That sucks. [/QUOTE] Blue Sky Studios, of course, is owned by 20th Century Fox, which is owned by News Corp. I haven’t seen anything made by Blue Sky. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/56 "2006-06-04T23:07:17Z")
[QUOTE=Chronos] Refreshing to know that I’m still a kid, because this one is apparently too adult for me. How is calling a hockey puck a hockey puck a joke? [/QUOTE] Never heard of Don Rickles? Read “Puck enters the language” here: > **[Hockey puck](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hockey_puck)** > > A hockey puck is either an open or closed disk used in a variety of sports and games. There are designs made for use on an ice surface, such as in ice hockey, and others for the different variants of floor hockey which includes the wheeled skate variant of inline hockey (a.k.a. roller hockey). They are all designed to serve the same function a ball does in ball games. A closed disk hockey puck having the shape of a short cylinder made of vulcanized rubber is used in the sport of ice hockey. Hock... ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/57 "2006-06-04T23:08:22Z")
Re: The OP. _Never_ bet against Pixar and John Lasseter. I’ve never doubted the final result of _Cars_ for one nanosecond, and the early praise is just reaffirmation of the studio’s craftsmanship. Re: **LOUNE’s** “They’re all the same… aren’t they?” – I have nought but pity for someone who so willingly denies themselves the pleasure of the depth and diversity of the Pixar film library. Re: [QUOTE=Chronos] Refreshing to know that I’m still a kid, because this one is apparently too adult for me. How is calling a hockey puck a hockey puck a joke? [/QUOTE] It’s a Don “Mr. Potato Head” Rickles catchphrase. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/58 "2006-06-04T23:09:42Z")
In addition, adding to the hilarious/apparent obscurity, Don Rickles actually voiced Mr. Potato Head ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/59 "2006-06-04T23:13:30Z")
Yargh, I was beaten to the clarification by rjung. I swear that post wasn’t there upon preview 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![furlibusea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aca169/32.png) [@furlibusea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/furlibusea)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2006, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313/60 "2006-06-04T23:15:38Z")
[QUOTE=Least Original User Name Ever] But that’s also the problem. I’m not drawing a giant difference between Pixar and Dreamworks. My detractors are drawing a difference. Pixar is “Disney”, Dreamworks is Disney-run. We’re struggling with defining our terms. As far as I’m concerned, there’s no reason to separate them. If someone wishes to, have at it. [/QUOTE] And we have told you over and over again that they are different. They are competitors. While Disney was Pixar’s distributor for a while, they had nothing to do with the production of those movies. Disney also owns US distribution rights to Miyazaki films, and believe me, evem though each of them has imaginary creatures in them, \*\*My Neighbor Totoro \*\* has damn little in common with **Shrek**. Yes Disney currently owns Pixar. Michael Jackson currently owns the Beatle catolog. It does not make him a Beatle. No one suggests you have to like these movies on our say so, but you are arguing from a place of ignorance. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cars-can-pixar-do-it-again/359313.md?page=4)