We’re not big Sony fans here at LRM Online. While the studio has had its share of hits and great films, they’ve also done what a lot of corporations do: go for mindless cash grabs at every turn. It’s often also at the expense of quality, which is what makes it worse than companies like Disney. You need only look at their handling of the live-action Spider-Man movies to see how they make a lot of their big decisions. But a lot of their issues don’t end with live-action. Their animated movies have been largely inconsistent as well.

While they have had the occasional solid movie like Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, most of them range from mediocre to bad. They hit an extreme valley just a few years back when The Emoji Movie plopped onto the scene, and sadly, while the movie was critically-panned…it still made money!

However, just over a year ago, they released the gem known as Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. That movie seemed to take the animation medium to a whole new level, all the while telling an ambitious story. But I wasn’t foolish enough to think this would mean anything for the quality of their next movie. If history had proven anything, it was that Sony was inconsistent.

A few days ago, the trailer for their new film Connected hit the web. 

Connected: A New Future For Sony Animation?

The film is the directorial debut of Mike Rianda, but it features geniuses Phil Lord and Chris Miller as producers, so you know there’s a certain level of quality that’ll be there. But I didn’t expect this. Right off the bat, in spite of the seemingly pedestrian premise — a dad and his kid traveling across the country — there are some standouts. The animation is GORGEOUS. It boasts an aesthetic that does harken back to Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs with some extra animation flourishes present.

And then the story hits a whole new level of interesting when the main external conflict of the film presents itself in the form of…killer robots. As a storyteller, this is the perfect setup for a pitch-perfect set of character arcs. Yes, this is a story about a family saving the world from robots, but it’s obviously about them growing closer as a family. Add in the element of technology, in that it’s both something that can bring us together and tear us apart, and you have a story firing on all cylinders. 

While I haven’t seen the film, it does seem to have all the ingredients for an endearing and thrilling tearjerker in the vein of something like Summer Wars. Like Connected, Summer Wars juxtaposed family against a world-altering threat in the form of technology, albeit in a different way.

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All in all, I think Connected could be indicative of a potentially more consistent animated slate going forward. Perhaps, after years and years of mediocrity, Sony has found the right leadership to help nurture the amazing talent they already have.

What do you think? Are you nearly as enthusiastic about Connected as I am? Let us know your thoughts down below!

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SOURCE: Sony