Wonder what all the hype is about? Settle down and read six good reasons to give this heart-warming new film a try.
When I first heard that Disney intended to do a Big Hero 6 film, I was skeptical. Even though I am a Marvel boy at heart and was familiar with the story, I just couldn’t see how this little-known property would be a success. It lacked the name recognition, the big star talent, and—dare we say—the pizzazz of the main films.
Boy, was I wrong.
Here are six reasons why we should all go see Big Hero 6:
Awesome Nerds
As the website says, we are Geeksout. All of us, in some way, have probably felt marginalized at some point for our nerdiness. That is exactly why a movie like this is amazing, not only for us, but for future generations. All of the main characters are self-classified nerds who work in the robotics and technology department of a university. Even the one stoner guy (Fred) who hangs around them is a comic book nerd who becomes the inspiration for the groups’ power suits.
For children who are growing up now, these role models are just the type they need—a type largely absent from the current batch of superhero films. Sure, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner are certifiable geniuses, but that aspect of their personality is overshadowed by the billionaire playboy or the angry ‘roid rager.
Having nerds be nerds (and derive their strength and special abilities from it) is what we all need to see.
Surprising Diversity
For a team of six individuals (one of whom is a robot), there is a surprising amount of diversity. Honey Lemon and Fred are white; Wasabi is African-American; GoGo is Korean (according to her official Disney bio); and Hiro and his brother Tadashi are vaguely Asian in his appearance and is probably of mixed descent (he’s raised by his Aunt Cass who is obviously Anglo, yet he and his brother have more Asian features).
Outside of racial markers, we have characters of different intellectual, age, and socio-economic levels. No individual fits the stereotype: Wasabi--the burly, dread-wearing muscle man--is actually timid and neurotic; The shiftless surfer-dude, Fred, is an heir to a fortune and a comic book nerd; shy, bookish Honey Lemon actually has a thrill-loving side. This interplay of expectations with the unexpected help to round out the characters into more realistic proportions.
Add one adorable, inflatable robot in the mix, and we have a beautiful portrayal of diversity.
Strong (& Smart) Females
As the Geeksout t-shirt says, we all are looking for a strong, female character. Damsels in distress are SO Golden Age! Women are not one-note characters solely defined by their gender or by their love interest; women are powerful, capable, and just plain badass.
Enter Honey Lemon and GoGo Tomago.
These women are on different ends of the femininity spectrum—GoGo is athletic, tough, sarcastic, and take-charge while Honey Lemon is shy, sweet, quirky, and demure—but both are scientific geniuses. Their gender in no way hampers their ability to make breakthroughs and kick some ass.
GoGo is easily a scene stealer. Her abilities are derived from magnetic-levitation wheels mounted to her ankles and/or wrists. She uses them to speed through the battle and as weapons, clipping away at the enemy. This full-frontal assault type is generally reserved for the headstrong macho man character, which only made me happier to see a woman take over the role. Early on in the film, GoGo actually saves the lives of the entire crew when she takes control of the car from a man, sliding through the streets like Tokyo Drift, symbolically taking back power for women everywhere.
At first, I was slightly disappointed in Honey Lemon’s portrayal: her costume is colored pink, incorporates a skirt, and has a purse as the main source of her abilities. Although the purse is canonical with the comic book character, it wasn’t until I saw Honey Lemon interacting with the device that I changed my mind.
The purse’s main purpose is to mix various chemicals and compounds together and place them in orbs that she can hurl at enemies. The orbs present a variety of abilities—from ice, to smoke, to adhesives—each controlled by a series of about 30 buttons. When I realized that she had to memorize the chemical compounds of a massive amount of compounds in order to key in each sequence on the battlefield without looking, I had a new respect for this kick-ass nerd used her brilliance to her advantage.
Everyday Heroes
At the end of the film, Hiro narrates to the audience that they didn’t intend to be heroes. Of course, we’ve seen this before (looking at you Spider-Man), but I never believed it more than with this film. Spider-Man had the deck stacked in his favor as far as abilities are concerned; even if he wasn’t trying very hard, he’d probably succeed.
However, no member of Big Hero 6 has any ability outside of their suits; Hiro doesn’t even have anything unique to him aside from his genius and connection to Baymax. They are extraordinarily brilliant college students who try to do right by their friend’s memory. They bumble, they make rookie mistakes, and they succeed on sheer luck and unconventional thinking.
They aren’t going to go out for shawarma with the big names after they save the city—they’re going to hit the books and study for their exams. And that is why I love them.
Believable Universe
I love it when a plan comes together; more specifically, I love it when any plot twist or development makes sense within the context of a story. I have to take my hats off to the writers of this film for tending to every detail. Just about everything has a scientific basis at its core that helps explain and further the plot. For instance, the first robot Hiro uses has self-adhering magnetic properties; this detail is incorporated into the micro-robots Hiro creates; these micro-robots are co-opted by the main villain, which leads Hiro and Baymax to discover the villain when one micro-bot is magnetically attracted to its peers.
Also, the characters’ abilities are (for the most part) based within the world of scientific discover: magnetic levitation, lasers, thought controlled machines, and even inflatable robots are all things our current science has demonstrated to be possible (look it up if you doubt). These facts add an interesting layer of believability to the storyline and may serve as scientific inspiration for a future generation of nerdlings who see the film.
Unconventional Relationships
All the previous reasons pales in comparison to the final one: the unconventional relationships that are present in the film. Taking a note from other recent hits like Brave and Frozen, Big Hero 6 is not a romantic love story. There is no damsel (or dude) in distress that needs saving. Instead, the crux of the narrative revolves around the love (and loss) of one brother to another, how he honors his departed sibling’s memory, and the surrogate family that is created to help with that process.
As members of the queer community, we are all too familiar with creating our own chosen families—people that love us through the hard times and are there for support. And I’m so glad to see a similar process represented on film.
It’ll make you laugh out loud, it’ll make you cry (at least I did), it’ll warm your heart—go out and see Big Hero 6.
N