Ever since its announcement in the mid 2010s, a little passion project from Lin Manuel Miranda and Quiara Alegría Hudes came into the limelight at Sony Pictures Animation, simply known as Vivo. Despite getting the shaft from worldwide theaters to be generally released on Netflix, like the other SPA films of this year, the film has been getting all kinds of love and attention from critics and audiences as of late. As of now, this marks the studio's first ever full length musical feature, with all of the songs created by Miranda himself, who also lent his voice to the titular character. So, now that it's out and about, how does it stand on its own?
The movie follows a one-of-kind kinkajou named Vivo, whose Cuban music playing owner Andres receives a letter from his old partner, the famous Marta Sandoval, telling him to attend a farewell concert. Due to tragedy striking poor Andres, it's up to Vivo to deliver a love letter to Marta, in the form of a song. Along the way to get to Marta, he meets the rebellious youngster Gabi, and the two bounce to the beat of their own drum to fulfill Andres' wishes. Now off the bat, this isn't the most stunning premise for a movie, as a lot of familiar beats are included to move the plot forward. You got the main character's arc of trying to fulfill his original owner's destiny, the crazy annoying side character, the obstacles expected when trying to deliver an important message, the macguffin, etc. In addition, one could imagine that since this is Vivo's story, that Gabi didn't necessarily need to be there, especially when there are a lot of strange things Vivo encounters outside his original home. Plus, it does take a while to get used to Gabi's overly obnoxious demeanor, no matter how rebellious it may be.
However, where the film lacks a strongly enticing premise, it more than makes up for in its execution. Given how many hurdles Vivo has to jump through in order to deliver his important love song to Marta Sandoval, the stakes really do come up at the expense of knowing whether or not Vivo can deliver the gift of not. As the film's biggest message is about loving someone that meant so much to you in the past, one can already root for Vivo just to reunite the love of his owner's life. Admittedly, that mission does end up losing some momentum around the second act once Vivo has to go through the harsher realities Florida has to offer nature-wise, but there are some cute friends and terrifying enemies that Vivo and Gabi meet along the way, so it ends up being in lieu of character development. In fact, while this is mainly Vivo's story through thick and thin, a lot of significant changes end up compromising Gabi and Andres' own family during the course of the film due to the connection between the musical kinkajou and his charming owner. How sweet when a monkey can bring a whole family back together again.
In terms of art direction, the movie is nothing short of gorgeous, especially in contrast from Cuba to Florida. The luscious landscapes of retroistic Havana may look down to Earth, but once we're in Florida, the film pulls no shortcuts in allowing the diverse amount of locations to speak for themselves in terms of lighting, scale, sets, exterior decor, and other fascinating material far beyond what the naked can spot. In addition, the more peaceful looking towns in Miami are nothing compared to the grandiose ultra vibrant city that the place is most well known for, as well as the dangerous everglades. Character wise, the cast look appropriately structured and caricatured enough to stand out amongst each other, and the motion allows for some solid performances, aided by a brilliant cast of Miranda, Ynairaly Simo, Zoe Saldana, Juan de Marcos Gonzalez and more. The true experimental highlights of the visuals are reserved for the wonderful musical numbers though, and that's where the animation crew really got to shine in bringing lush latino artwork inside the world of moving images.
Speaking of the musical numbers, a lot of them vary in tune, but they all carry the plot and motivations forward beautifully. The opening song, One of a Kind, immediately establishes the tight connection Vivo has with Andres as his original owner, with some authentically upbeat Cuban tunage. Other songs establish a character's inner desires, like the harmoniously colorful Mambo Cabana for Andres' love of Marta, the modernesque upbeat My Own Drum that sets up Gabi's rebellious dominance, and even the suavely romantic Love's Gonna Pick you Up, reserved for two quirky spoonbills in love. Other songs merely move the plot forward to be in lieu of bigger scenes like the intensively catchy Keep the Beat and the dangerously tense Tough Crowd. And then there's the love song made for Marta, which not only serves as a solemn reminder of the old friend Marta once knew, but also encapsulates the movie's themes as a beacon of hope to those who are still loved by those from their past. Needless to say, Miranda truly outdid himself as the song auteur he is, for a family audience this time around.
It's amazing the wonders someone as beloved and gifted as Miranda and his creative partner can bring to the world when given the right opportunity to shine. So while it may not offer too many surprises along its way, Vivo is quite the engaging adventure that livens up with some charming characters, appetizing visuals and some of the finest songs in Miranda's discography. If you are yet to see this film or are a pure Miranda enthusiast, then by all means give it a go on Netflix. At this point, with all of the lovely content Sony, Miranda and more are bringing to the world, only time will tell what's left up their sleeves.
The movie follows a one-of-kind kinkajou named Vivo, whose Cuban music playing owner Andres receives a letter from his old partner, the famous Marta Sandoval, telling him to attend a farewell concert. Due to tragedy striking poor Andres, it's up to Vivo to deliver a love letter to Marta, in the form of a song. Along the way to get to Marta, he meets the rebellious youngster Gabi, and the two bounce to the beat of their own drum to fulfill Andres' wishes. Now off the bat, this isn't the most stunning premise for a movie, as a lot of familiar beats are included to move the plot forward. You got the main character's arc of trying to fulfill his original owner's destiny, the crazy annoying side character, the obstacles expected when trying to deliver an important message, the macguffin, etc. In addition, one could imagine that since this is Vivo's story, that Gabi didn't necessarily need to be there, especially when there are a lot of strange things Vivo encounters outside his original home. Plus, it does take a while to get used to Gabi's overly obnoxious demeanor, no matter how rebellious it may be.
However, where the film lacks a strongly enticing premise, it more than makes up for in its execution. Given how many hurdles Vivo has to jump through in order to deliver his important love song to Marta Sandoval, the stakes really do come up at the expense of knowing whether or not Vivo can deliver the gift of not. As the film's biggest message is about loving someone that meant so much to you in the past, one can already root for Vivo just to reunite the love of his owner's life. Admittedly, that mission does end up losing some momentum around the second act once Vivo has to go through the harsher realities Florida has to offer nature-wise, but there are some cute friends and terrifying enemies that Vivo and Gabi meet along the way, so it ends up being in lieu of character development. In fact, while this is mainly Vivo's story through thick and thin, a lot of significant changes end up compromising Gabi and Andres' own family during the course of the film due to the connection between the musical kinkajou and his charming owner. How sweet when a monkey can bring a whole family back together again.
In terms of art direction, the movie is nothing short of gorgeous, especially in contrast from Cuba to Florida. The luscious landscapes of retroistic Havana may look down to Earth, but once we're in Florida, the film pulls no shortcuts in allowing the diverse amount of locations to speak for themselves in terms of lighting, scale, sets, exterior decor, and other fascinating material far beyond what the naked can spot. In addition, the more peaceful looking towns in Miami are nothing compared to the grandiose ultra vibrant city that the place is most well known for, as well as the dangerous everglades. Character wise, the cast look appropriately structured and caricatured enough to stand out amongst each other, and the motion allows for some solid performances, aided by a brilliant cast of Miranda, Ynairaly Simo, Zoe Saldana, Juan de Marcos Gonzalez and more. The true experimental highlights of the visuals are reserved for the wonderful musical numbers though, and that's where the animation crew really got to shine in bringing lush latino artwork inside the world of moving images.
Speaking of the musical numbers, a lot of them vary in tune, but they all carry the plot and motivations forward beautifully. The opening song, One of a Kind, immediately establishes the tight connection Vivo has with Andres as his original owner, with some authentically upbeat Cuban tunage. Other songs establish a character's inner desires, like the harmoniously colorful Mambo Cabana for Andres' love of Marta, the modernesque upbeat My Own Drum that sets up Gabi's rebellious dominance, and even the suavely romantic Love's Gonna Pick you Up, reserved for two quirky spoonbills in love. Other songs merely move the plot forward to be in lieu of bigger scenes like the intensively catchy Keep the Beat and the dangerously tense Tough Crowd. And then there's the love song made for Marta, which not only serves as a solemn reminder of the old friend Marta once knew, but also encapsulates the movie's themes as a beacon of hope to those who are still loved by those from their past. Needless to say, Miranda truly outdid himself as the song auteur he is, for a family audience this time around.
It's amazing the wonders someone as beloved and gifted as Miranda and his creative partner can bring to the world when given the right opportunity to shine. So while it may not offer too many surprises along its way, Vivo is quite the engaging adventure that livens up with some charming characters, appetizing visuals and some of the finest songs in Miranda's discography. If you are yet to see this film or are a pure Miranda enthusiast, then by all means give it a go on Netflix. At this point, with all of the lovely content Sony, Miranda and more are bringing to the world, only time will tell what's left up their sleeves.