Cars Review

Kelsey Sova, Staff Writer

Everyone loves a good Disney movie. Whether that be Frozen, The Lion King, Toy Story, or even Cars, which is my personal favorite. A Lot of people will sigh or appear to be disappointed in me when I tell them that Cars is my favorite movie, but it’s not my fault- it is such a good movie!

Cars, which had an average rating of 4 out of 5 stars on Rotten Tomatoes, is about a racecar, named Lightning McQueen. When Lightning was caught in a three-way tie for the championship, the Piston Cup, he finds himself on a late night road trip to California, for the tie breaker race, with his hauler, Mack. Mack falls asleep on the drive out, and accidentally forgets Lightning on the highway.

In desperate hopes of finding Mack, Lightning gets lost and ends up in the middle of nowhere, in a small town called Radiator Springs. Before arriving there, McQueen was a hot shot race car and didn’t have very many friends or family. Being in Radiator Springs taught him about the values of having friendships and relationships. He met his very own best friend in Radiator Springs, Tow Mater.

This movie is based on actual race car driving, most closely compared to the current NASCAR Cup Series. The third movie even has four NASCAR drivers, Bubba Wallace Jr, Daniel Suàrez, Ryan Blaney, and Chase Elliott, playing the voice of some of the race cars!

The first movie has three notable cast members as well. Former NASCAR driver, Richard Petty, voicing The King, Larry the Cable guy, who voices Tow Mater, and Owen Wilson, who voices Lightning McQueen. Obviously, the whole cast contributed to the movie, and the movie would not be the same without them, however those voices are the most notable in the film.

Towards the end of the movie, back out in California, after an anonymous caller told everyone where he was, Lightning McQueen gave up the Piston Cup. He wanted to do the right thing, help The King, after he wrecked and was not going to be able to finish the race on his own. Due to his outstanding sportsmanship, Lightning McQueen was deemed the true winner of the race and quickly became the fan-favorite.

Lightning can’t get all of the credit though. He learned all of his fancy tricks from his inspiration, Doc Hudson. Doc was a racecar that raced on dirt and had a terrible wreck that ended his career. He hid from everything for years, until he was found in Radiator Springs. McQueen looked up to him for so long and was very eager to learn from his idol.

Cars, although a kids movie, really helps highlight the importance of friendships. Even though he is not the most perfect best friend in the world, Tow Mater is what keeps Lightning McQueen down to Earth. Without having met the people he did in Radiator Springs, Lightning McQueen would not be who he is today without them. In the movies Cars 2 and Cars 3, these people appear quite often, showing just how important they are to Lightning and how important friends are.

Cars is a great movie for all ages. It is bright, colorful, and entertaining. The movie was animated well and was pleasing to the eye. All of the characters have their own personalities that really bring the movie to life. I definitely would recommend this movie to everyone. This movie, as well as Cars 2 and Cars 3 can be streamed on Disney+.