Deep Dive Pixar: Wes Looks at Luca

Welcome everyone to Deep Dive Pixar, the Italian cousin of Deep Dive Disney and Welcome everyone to Luca, a film released long after Deep Dive Disney began. It is still surreal to me that I actually made it through my original schedule. In any case, here we are with Luca. Luca focuses on our title character, a young sea monster who, like the rest of his species, transforms into a human when he goes up on dry land. Like many a Disney protagonist before him, Luca is curious about the human world but is forbidden from exploring it because of his well-meaning but over-protective parents. When Luca meets Alberto, another sea monster who seems to know a lot about the human world, the two decide to run away together to the surface and enjoy all the new and exciting things it has to offer. The boys make their way to the small Italian fishing village of Portorosso where they befriend a young human girl named Giulia and her intimidating yet kind-hearted father Massimo. Together, the three children form a team to compete in an upcoming athletic competition in order to use the prize money to buy a vespa. And, that’s kind of it. Yeah, this one doesn’t have as deep a meaning as some Pixar films of the past. Believe it or not, this caused the film to face a fair amount of backlash, making Luca something of a victim of the high bar Pixar set for itself. Me, I’m fine with something decidedly more simple, especially considering the fact that Pixar’s last outing was literally about The Meaning of Life. So, let’s waste no further time and dive deep into Luca.

Main Character:

I don’t actually have too much to say about Luca himself, he’s a character archetype we’ve seen many, MANY times before here on Deep Dive Disney. He’s a curious little boy looking for adventure who’s held back by his parents and that’s kind of all there is to it. I’m not saying he’s a bad character. Quite the contrary, Disney keeps giving us characters like this because they work, unless they have red hair and a fish tail of course. One thing I especially like about Luca is how excited he is by the idea of going to school with Giulia and just how awesome they make education sound in general. As many of you may know, I come from a family of teachers, so I’m always pleased to see an emphasis on education.

Now, let’s discuss Alberto. Alberto can come across as a bit of a troublemaker and a know-it-all, especially with how he claims to know everything about humans when in reality he knows very little, but there is a reason Alberto is the way he is. Alberto apparently had a very rocky relationship with his father. There’s even a popular theory that the “Bruno” in “Silencio Bruno,” the phrase Alberto and Luca use to block out that inner voice that tells them something is a bad idea, is actually referring to Alberto’s dad. See, we learn later on that Alberto’s father abandoned him which has colored his world view quite a bit. So, when Luca decides he wants to go to school, Alberto just sees another abandonment coming. I do appreciate that Alberto eventually comes around, even selling the Vespa they won so Luca can go to school because this friendship means so much more to him.

Villain:

It feels like it’s been a while since we’ve had an antagonist who wasn’t A. A Twist Villain or B. A character who only qualifies as a villain in the loosest sense. Not to say Ercole is one of the great Disney villains or even all that great, it’s just a possible step in the right direction if we’re ever going to get the great Disney Villains of old again. That said, there’s not a lot to say about Ercole. He’s self-absorbed, flamboyant bully who has won the Portorosso Cup for several years in a row and uses that accolade to declare himself superior to all other kids in the village. I get the sense that he’s trying to be a Gaston type, but comes across more like Bradley Uppercrust from An Extremely Goofy Movie.

Side Characters:

Luca’s parents are clearly loving and want what’s best, but… let’s just say their methods are keeping Luca away from the surface warrant inclusion in the Dark Disney Factor. Still, Maya Rudolph and Jim Gaffigan are a pair of reliable hands in the acting department and do a great job. I also like how they start inadvertently having fun on the surface once they go up looking for Luca.

Luca’s grandma is cool. She apparently regularly visits the surface and covers for Luca when he goes up there himself. She knows what Luca’s parents do not, that the surface isn’t all that bad a place.

Giulia is a fun character. She’s super intense and obsessed with winning the Portorosso cup for the sole reason of taking Ercole down a few pegs. She is also a really sweet person who has a passion for learning, particularly about Astronomy. I also appreciate that once she finds out Luca is a Sea Monster, she doesn’t outright reject him, but just tells him to leave so he’ll be safe. A unique twist on the third act breakup.

Finally, there’s my favorite character in the movie, Giulia’s father, Massimo. At first, Massimo is terrifying to our heroes, and to just about everyone else on account of the fact that he’s a grizzled, one-armed, stone-faced badass who hunts sea monsters. In reality though, Massimo actually has a heart of gold, loves his daughter and is the first to accept the two sea monster boys once their true nature is exposed. Also, he was apparently born with only one arm, so, points for disabled representation.

Memorable Scenes:

It seems like such a minor thing, but my favorite scene in the movie is where Luca learns how to walk on dry land. The animation is hilarious as Luca contorts himself and flops around on the ground like a fish trying to get the hang of it.

I also like this bit where Luca keeps insisting that he needs to go home, only for timecards to keep moving things ahead and tell us that he still hasn’t left. All that’s missing is the narrator from Spongebob Squarepants.

Story:

Like I said at the top, this movie is in no way trying to be as deep as Soul, it’s just trying to be a fun little movie about Sea Monsters trying to win a vespa. They throw in a standard “don’t judge a book by its cover” message, but that’s pretty much all we get in terms of deeper meaning.

That out of the way, I’d like to talk about what really works in Luca, at least for me, and that’s the setting. Much in the way The Princess & The Frog made New Orleans seem so amazing and alive, Luca makes this coastal village in Italy seem like one of the most amazing places ever. I would love to just hang out in this town, compete in its athletic events, sample the cuisine, whatever. I also appreciate all the use of the Italian language, making me feel like I’m hanging out with my Sicilian barber. Fun stuff.

The Dark Disney Factor:

Let’s talk about creepy Uncle Ugo, voiced by a very surprising Sascha Baron Cohen cameo. Uncle Ugo lives in the deepest, darkest depths of the ocean and is frankly a living nightmare. Particularly with his unfocused eyes, sea through torso and a heart that has to be punched every so often or he dies. See, when Luca displays interest in the surface, his parents threaten to send him to live with Uncle Ugo at the bottom of the ocean, where there’s nothing but darkness. I’m sure Luca’s parents meant well, but this is a bit dark, like, literally, they’re sending him to live in eternal darkness because he went up to the surface. That’s a bit unnecessarily harsh.

Final Thoughts:

Luca is probably not going to make too many lists of people's favorite Pixar movies, but I don't actually think it's trying to. It's just trying to be fun and relaxing, and in that regard, I'd call Luca a resounding success. Next time, it's a Patreon exclusive article where we'll be starting our multi-part look at the Twisted Tales book series, starting with As Old As Time, their reimagining of Beauty & The Beast.