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Edwin Davies: It may not be fair to compare it to Ratatouille, The Incredibles or Up, since John Lasseter didn't write or direct any of those films, but since he did write and direct Toy Story 1 and 2, A Bug's Life and the original Cars, (and that's discounting the considerable creative imput he has into pretty much every Pixar project) it is far to compare it to those films. If it doesn't measure up to the Toy Story films, probably the best animated films ever made, then that's holding it to too high of a standard. But if it doesn't measure up to the original Cars, which wasn't up to Pixar's usual standard anyway, then comparison is a fair method.

Shalimar Sahota: Everyone expects great things from Pixar. From what I hear, Cars 2 is a film tailored more towards children than adults this time. Most of the critics aren't children... well, maybe a few of them are. However, when you're eating the store branded ice cream, you can't help but compare it to the Ben & Jerry's you used to have. I hope it's not a sign of things to come. I would just be wary of their upcoming films, for I dread to imagine that right now, someone at Pixar is thinking, "Even if we don't build it right, they'll still come!"

Tom Houseman: People have come to expect Pixar to make movies that appeal to adults just as much as they do to children. It seems like they didn't do that this time, and the reviews have attacked it for that. Cars was, for me, Pixar's least compelling and least complex film, and it seems like the sequel will be even worse. It doesn't look "bad for Pixar" as much as it looks "just bad."

Although, to be fair, I don't drink nearly as much Pixar Kool-Aid as the rest of the BOP staff, as I wasn't a big fan of Nemo or The Incredibles, so my opinion may need to be disregarded. Still, it's worth noting that this will be the first Pixar film I won't see in theaters since Toy Story 2.

Jim Van Nest: I posted this on another board the other day in defense of Cars and Cars 2. I still feel that it fits: "Ya know, I liked Cars well enough, but I really don't think it was made for me. I mean, Pixar's made 12 films now. What's so bad about them making a cartoon that's actually for kids? Sure, we can go with the 'it's just an ad for the toys' or 'it's just a money grab.' But why not see it for what it is? While Cars was the worst reviewed of the Pixar films, those reviews were done by adults. Go out and ask a group of five to ten-year-olds what their favorite Pixar film is, and you'll probably see at least a 95% fresh rating for Cars. Kids LOVE Lightning McQueen. They LOVE Mater. I just don't see the problem in making the occasional film that's really just for the kids. Sure, for us (and all the critics/reviewers out there) we appreciate the beauty and art that is Up and WALL-E...but when you ask a room full of six-year-olds what movie they want to watch...it's freakin' Mater and Lightning time."

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