9 Movies That Were Really Just Feature-Length Adverts In Disguise
9. Cars 2
Reminding us all that Pixars films are primarily aimed at children, Cars 2 was the companys first critical dud (although contrary to popular belief it still made a tidy profit). And while Brave and Monsters University have managed to save the animation houses integrity, it remains a blemish that leaves everyone questioning whether John Lasseter has sold out or didn't realise the simplistic nature of what he was doing. Cars may not have been the most popular film with parents (although it has more merits than the backlash would have you to believe), but the same isnt true of their children. A bigger draw than Woody and Buzz, Cars merchandising is Pixar's biggest earner. And every creative decision made in the sequel conceivably had its roots in toy sale statistics. Mater a character anyone under the age of seven cant stand becomes the star over Lightning McQueen, the plot involves the only thing cooler to young boys than talking cars, talking spy cars, and we get taken to plenty of different locations that gives us a massive supporting cast ripe for diecast models. Even the traditional Pixar emotional moral is downsized to allow as much action (easily transformable into playsets) into the plot. Planes, the spin-off that had such high merchandising prospects it was promoted from direct-to-DVD to cinematic release last year, was an even worse offender, but at least this time Pixar was nowhere near the project, meaning there was no question of artistic integrity. Well not for them, anyhow.
