Best movie of this year hands down!

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Awesome Movie

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Am a huge fan of Pixar, really liking to loving a vast majority of their feature films (the three 'Toy Story' films, 'Coco' and 'Inside Out' being my favourites, and the two 'Cars' sequels and 'The Good Dinosaur' being my least favourites). Also really like to love pretty much all their short films.'Bao', which proceeded 'Incredibles 2', is not one of their best short films for me. It is not on the same level as 'Presto', 'One Man Band', 'Geri's Game', 'Piper', 'Knick Knack', 'For the Birds' and 'Luxo Jr', which had more imagination and resonated more with me. 'Bao' is still very good and much better than its controversial critical reception here says from humble personal opinion. Can definitely understand the criticisms directed against it, while finding that some of the negavity has gotten over-the-top mainly at a part that was over quite quickly. Very like how a few of the criticisms directed at 'Incredibles 2' has been blown out of proportion by some parents.Will admit to being shocked by the aforementioned part, as was everybody in the auditorium, one woman crying out "that's awful" amidst dead silence. Didn't find it anywhere near as disturbing as has been described though, likening it to cannibalism is a bit strong.Similarly, it wasn't obvious to me straightaway what the ending meant. Thinking about it and discussing it after 'Incredibles 2' ended, it became much clearer and it no longer became perplexing but instead strange but touching. Definitely one of the top 5 endings of a Pixar short film that stayed with me.However, the animation is wonderful. Very bright and colourful with lot of striking background detail and character designs that definitely stand out comparing it with other Pixar short films. The music is whimsical and understated.There is a lot of charm and sweetness, the little dumpling is adorable, and the emotional element is very poignant, the sentimentality didn't get too much and very true to Pixar. Managing to do that without saying anything at all, something that Pixar excels at frequently better than most. The relationship between the mother and the dumpling is very cute, touching and investable, a very strong reminder of what motherhood and bonds between mother and child are like. Many are likely to find themselves relating to a lot of the scenes depicting what the dumpling goes through, the stages of life and the mother's over-protection, being very true to real life and mother and child relationships and hobbies, struggles and life stages of real people.As said, the ending lingers long in the memory, the story is slight but engaging and the mother is depicted very honestly. The setting is beautifully realised too. Overall, not one of my favourites but there is a lot to like about this (to me) impressed and over-criticised charmer. 8/10 Bethany Cox

Pixart always gets what touchs people's empathy nerve. We all feel lonely and wanting for company, some finds video game, some finds pets.You know what my strongest though while watching incredible 2? Jac jac is so cute and i want to have a baby too.Think back to this short film. Emmm.

This short almost had me in tears, which RARELY happens. Every thing about it pulled on my emotions in just the right way. The music was incredibly conducive to the message. Here I was, waiting for a fun day of Incredibles, and then this short caught me off guard and had me rethinking my whole relationship with my mother. This short will make you cry, and make you think. A beautiful ending was the icing on the cake. I would HIGHLY recommend taking just a few minutes out of your day to watch this short, you will not regret it.

The above really is all you need to know, but I'm having a slow night, so what the hell. The theme's aren't terribly complex, it's empty nest syndrome and a strained mother/son relationship. In that sense it's actually pretty basic, and you know they're going for cheap tugs at impressionable heart strings. They do seem to be forgetting that this short is leading into a kid's movie, and the metaphor of eating her own food son to stop him from leaving her will no doubt be going over the heads of any child in attendance. It's not that it's a terribly deep metaphor, just a clumsy one. I think a considerable fumble actually occurs in the fact that the short has an unhealthy message about relationships. I'm certain that any first generation Asian person can tell you some horror stories about their own over-protective or even abusive tiger mom. So, the idea that it's on these kids to apologize for not being a willing recipient of this unhealthy treatment seems unintentional, but it's still the core message of the story. (Again, not terribly deep, but clumsy")Also, it irks me that the short is preceded by the cast of the Incredibles apologizing for the sequel taking so long to come out. Samuel L. Jackson ends that video with a "without further adieu..." and then they give us further adieu. I guess the animation was nice. Not quite in the uncanny valley, but just on the left side of it. All in all, I would say, just use the start of the short as your last chance to get snacks or use the bathroom before the movie starts.