Movie Review: Vivo

Movie Review: Vivo                                                                                                                      9-22-21

Vivo, the first-ever musical from Sony Pictures Animation, tells the story of a kinkajou named Vivo (Lin-Manuel Miranda), who lives happily with his owner Andrés Hernández (Juan de Marcos Gonzalez) in Havana, Cuba. One day, Andres receives a letter from his childhood friend Marta Sandoval (Gloria Estefan), who now lives in Miami, Florida, and the letter confesses his love to her. The next morning, Andres dies, which makes the town very sad. There, Vivo meets Andres’s niece Rosa (Zoe Saldana) and her daughter Gabriella (Ynairly Simo), who both come from Florida. Vivo sneaks into Gabi’s luggage, ends up in Florida, befriends Gabi, and embarks on an adventure to give the letter to Marta before she performs her final show.

While it obviously doesn’t hold a candle to Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse or The Mitchells vs the Machines, Vivo is still a strong entry from Sony Pictures Animation with the best songs in a non-Disney animated musical since The Prince of Egypt, beautiful animation, top-notch voice acting, and a strong message about accepting grief.

Vivo isn't the only character in the movie to have a loved one pass away too soon.

It’s also refreshing to have an animated film other than Dumbo take place in Florida. In fact, the Sand Dollars, a Girl Scout group that Gabi secretly despises, is dedicated to saving Florida’s wildlife.

Is it me, or do the Sand Dollars look like extras from The Boss Baby?

In conclusion, while Vivo may not be the best animated movie of the year, it’s definitely worth a watch for music lovers.

If you are reading this, Kristine Belson, thank you so much for saving Sony Pictures Animation. A few years ago, Sony was an animation studio that very few people really cared for. But now, with hit films like Spider-Verse, The Mitchells vs the Machines, and now Vivo, they’re a force to be reckoned with that is even making Disney and Pixar wet their pants.

Rating: 3.6 stars out of 5.

PS. I will not post any new movie reviews until November. Instead, on October 28th, in honor of both Halloween and International Animation Day, I will post my personal Top 10 Favorite Disney Villains!