Onward Review (Film, 2020)
I’m a big fan of the Urban Fantasy genre. These are stories featuring high fantasy elements in a more contemporary setting. This is where your vampire police officers or witch lawyer series come into play. I love fantasy, and I love fantasy in a different context. Once the fantasy world is set up, this genre regularly handles more mature stories through the safer lens of something we know isn’t really real. The distance allows for deeper exploration of real world issues in a way that feels far safer than a more traditional dramatic storytelling.
Onward opens with a montage of historical high fantasy epics in the town. Flash forward to the present, and the town is still populated with high fantasy creatures. They just live like us in modern society. Ian, a shy elf, is celebrating his sixteenth birthday. He wants to be like his dad, who sadly passed away before he was born, but nothing seems to go his way. His mom surprises him with a gift from his dad, a wizard staff, intended to be given to him and his brother Barley when he turned 16. Their father wrote a spell to allow his sons to bring him back to life for one day. Sadly, the spell fails, and only the bottom half of their father is brought back.
This is the kind of bizarre story that can be made so heartfelt and honest in the context of contemporary fantasy. Onward sets up a world where magic is real and unusual creatures populate the world. Barley is obsessed with Quests of Yore, a tabletop role-playing game based on the history of their world. Ian discovers he has magical powers trying to cast their father’s spell. They set off on a quest for the gemstone needed to finish the spell with the game as a guide.
The result is an emotional family drama about grief and growth. There’s levity created through the fantasy elements. The father character communicates by tapping his feet (a game he used to play with Barley) and has to rely on his sons to guide him with a leash. The high fantasy locations and characters are real, but shifted into modern settings, like a tavern turned into a character dining restaurant or the paths on a map being replaced by roads and freeways. There’s plenty of laughs and a sense of genuine wonder to relax into.
The sillier fantasy elements allow what is undoubtedly a children’s film to grapple with serious material. The family’s motivation for even trying the spell is one chance to see the father again. Ian lives his life trying to live up to the expectations of a father he never met. Barley obsesses over history and is direct in saying he doesn’t really remember his father, but is the most disappointed when his father’s spell won’t even work for him. Their mother had to live through the grief of losing her husband while she was carrying Ian. She probably wants to see him the most, but has to put a positive spin on the failure of the spell so her children don’t grieve the loss all over again.
As the characters head on their quests (Ian and Barley to get the stone, the mother to find her sons), they have beautifully crafted discussions about life, purpose, grief, and love. That is, they have lovely discussions about the meaning of life in between living out modern twists on classic tabletop RPG tropes. The story is serious, but handled in a delicate way that should be fun for anyone to watch. The scarier moments aren’t any darker than Lilo & Stitch, a thematically similar film that used science fiction tropes the same way.
Onward is a throwback fantasy/adventure film that gets to thrive in the modern context of animation more willingly viewed as a medium for everyone. The humor and modern spins on classic tropes make this one fun and exciting for any age. Younger viewers will connect with the humor and adventure, while older viewers can start to dig into the more mature thematic elements and beautiful character arcs. It really is a balanced animated film for everyone to enjoy.
Onward is currently streaming on Disney+.
