Maya's Take

Pixar’s movie Soul, directed by Pete Docter and Kemp Powers, explores the thin line between enjoying what you do and letting that joy become an addictive pursuit. The film is visually stunning, with Pixar's trademark animation bringing the metaphysical concepts to life in a captivating way. The voice talents of Jamie Foxx and Tina Fey contribute significantly to the emotional depth of the characters. Personally, I found Soul to be a thought-provoking and beautifully crafted film. Its message resonates, highlighting the importance of balance in our pursuit of purpose and the significance of being present in the moment.

Joe Gardner breathes and dreams jazz. He dedicates his entire life to that one activity. He has a profession as a middle school band teacher, but desperately wants to perform professionally onstage. Once he finally gets that big gig he’s dreamed of, he becomes so excited he forgets where he is walking and falls down a sewer hole to his death. Except he isn’t technically dead yet, as he discovers a spiritual world. When mentoring 22, another soul, he reviews how his life transpired. All of his painful memories are revealed to him, so he comes to the conclusion that his whole life was a failure, and he must return to set the record straight. Later on in the movie, 22 allows him to see how obsessed he was with jazz. In one scene, she talks to a barber about life and he says even though being a barber wasn’t his original choice, he’s still a happy man and sees the beauty of it. He wasn’t born to do what he does, it’s just something he discovered along the way.

When the search for a singular purpose becomes all-consuming, individuals may miss out on the richness of everyday experiences. Soul encourages viewers to appreciate the journey and the simple joys of life rather than fixating on a grand purpose. Very often, that’s what happens when someone is obsessed with whatever activity they consider to be their life’s purpose. There are times when nothing else matters but that one activity, and while that mindset can be beneficial at times when you want to get something done, not being self-aware about it can cause major issues to your mental health.

Moreover, I found it interesting when a little girl expresses her disdain towards jazz music and then five minutes later plays her trombone, gets into her flow state, and suddenly changes her mind. The point is that human beings are like that – our minds change all the time, every year, every day. You can have a passion for something and still get bored with it sometimes. There are days when you might even want to never do it again, then a day goes by and you go right back at it as if nothing ever happened.

Once you finally find your “purpose,” you can be obsessed by it to the point where it’s all you think, dream, and talk about. When you are with your friends, for example, you may not even realize that all you talk about is that one activity that you put on a pedestal. You miss all the other satisfying memories of what life has to offer. After he gets his body back near the end of the movie, Joe finally performs at the concert he tried so desperately hard to get into, and discovers it wasn’t what he thought it would be.

Imagine dedicating your entire life to a gig, only to find out it was just like any other job. Slightly more exciting, yes, but not quite what you were expecting. At that point, I think pretty much anyone would fall into an instant state of depression. You would realize that all the people you could have connected with better, all the opportunities you passed up, and all the days that you took for granted are all long gone. You would instantly realize that the whole search for life’s purpose is a trap. A trap designed to ruin you both physically and mentally. The film challenges the societal pressure to constantly chase success and prompts reflection on what truly brings meaning to our lives. The movie's relatable themes make it accessible to a wide audience, as many people grapple with the concept of purpose and the potential pitfalls of obsession. Overall, Soul is not just an animated feature; it's a philosophical exploration that encourages viewers to appreciate the beauty of life's journey rather than fixate on a destination.

Purpose is something that I think needs to be redefined. The fact of the matter is you didn’t come into this world to do one specific thing. None of us did. Everything you do in this world, everything you experience, the highs, the lows, the successes, the failures, the love, the negativity, that’s what living life is all about: experience. That's the meaning of life. Even something as simple as walking or breathing air are life’s purposes. So free your soul from that limited box. You can be anything, multiple things, and that time will come, but don’t forget to be happy to be alive.

Maria's Take

Probably everyone, at some point in their life, has faced (or will face) a situation when the question pops up in their head: “What, exactly, is the meaning of my existence?” This is probably one of those questions to which there will never be a clear answer, because life itself is already an abstract and amorphous concept. Its meaning is extremely individual, and is closely related to a person’s personality, previous life experience, and many other factors. There are countless ways to see the interpretation of this question, and the search for answers to it – even digging deep into the ancient texts of antiquity – but what attracted my attention was the message of the animated film Soul, which says that there is no need to look for answers to these questions, because life is not about that – it is about possibilities, and not about an empty search for answers.

Finding himself in a post-mortem space, Joey manages to “fall out” beyond its boundaries and lands at the opposite end – the place where souls are being formed before birth. I personally believe that this whole space should be considered a kind of allegory for human development in childhood, especially the moment with “talent” (“spark”), which represents passion for the kind of thing that exists on Earth. Joey meets a soul, 22, who, through centuries, has not found something that would attract her to life on Earth. Together they decide to cooperate, so as not to change anything in their lives – 22 stays in this place and won’t go to Earth, and Joey returns to Earth, and will finally join a jazz quartet. However, everything does not work out as expected, and eventually soul number 22 goes along with Joey to Earth, but not in their own bodies.

The further the plot goes, the more the boundaries of the concepts of “meaning of life” and “destination” blur, and the viewer understands that the first is not equal to the other. The film makes it clear that life is not a specific road that you need to follow without turning off – it is a complex concept that depends on many factors in a person’s life. There is no specific thing that in itself should force a person to live; on the contrary, the film tries to explain to the viewer that life is something that needs to be lived at this moment, and you must not become obsessed with something from the dull past, or a seemingly promising future. Happiness in life does not come from some “control points” that will change life for the better in one step, but from simple little things, such as the ability to taste food. In fact, both ways of finding meaning are equal, and both a large-scale event and an “ordinary” one are all the same components of life. Due to our complex ability to embellish life with emotions, the concepts of “career,” “destination,” and “meaning of life,” look much larger and more delightful than some familiar everyday event.

So, what is remarkable about this film, and why does it deserve a five-star rating? First is its representation of the characters, and of African-American culture, through the theme of jazz. Second, the style of the environment and the smoothness of the animation makes the film a good example of high-quality modern animation.

Finally, the message of the film is quite relevant in today’s complex post-industrial society. The topic “meaning of life” is complex and doesn’t have a clear answer. One thing is clear: we should not forget about the fact that we must live to live, because life is not essentially about the goal, but about this moment. The way the film itself shows this topic is great, and I think that it can give many people a motive to start thinking about their lives, and whether it is worth starting to live as if you know that tomorrow you might lose it.