Life is a Highway: An Analysis of Disney Pixar's 'Cars'

Disney's 'Cars' franchise is a well-loved, quotable trilogy that has played a part in the childhoods of many children born in the noughties. From Owen Wilson's unforgettable performance as protagonist 'Lightning McQueen' to Rascal Flatt's 'Life is a Highway' that takes center stage on the soundtrack; this movie has had an undeniable cultural impact however today I will be focusing on how 'Cars' is an allegory for the political situation of the United States of America. Animation is a powerful medium, with major animation flicks having underlying political or ethical messages in order to shape the minds and behaviours of our future generations in subtle ways, Disney is no stranger to this. Cars serves as more than just a wholesome children's movie but rather could be a discussion of counter urbanisation in rural America as well as the damaging impacts of Celebrity. 

Cars 1 begins on a high note, with McQueen about to take first place at the prestigious 'Piston Cup' but ends with McQueen stranded in a rundown Desert town called 'Radiator Springs'. Through neon light filled flashbacks and lovable local Mater, we learn that 'Radiator Springs' was actually a popular layover spot in the past however due to recent development projects it has fallen under the radar, with locals on the verge of bankruptcy forced to accept the consequences of the changing world. 'Radiator Springs' was actually based off a number of Route 66 towns as mentioned by Pixar in an interview with Route 66 news. Route 66, the infamous American highway which spanned 5 states and was sadly decertified in the mid 80s, was a clear example of how development of the urban world meant trouble for rural towns. Michael Wallis, writer of 'Route 66: The Mother Road' and voice of the Sheriff, stated that 'This Road [sic] has always been a mirror held to reflect what goes on in this nation' which is something highlighted within Cars as the lighting choices change from high contrast, flashing lights to sepia toned natural lighting. This visually reflects the decay of Radiator Springs in comparison to the ambiguous city where the Piston Cup takes place. This is a common occurrence throughout rural America with urban decay being a visible consequence of quick development and disparity in funding between economic hubs and independent business districts. John Lasseter cleverly uses dialect differences between Mater and McQueen to potentially illustrate the class gap between those in society with access to education and developed concepts and those who are forgotten when assigning funding in key sectors. Mater acts as McQueen's foil and carefully presents this idea to the audience by playing into stereotypes associated with Southern US Citizens, reinforcing Medhurst's theory of stereotyping being used to communicate concepts quickly with target audiences who potentially have already accepted these stereotypes as truth. The setting could also be interpreted as representing the Rust Belt concept, which highlights how some cities in the USA saw extreme urban decay, deindustrialisation and population losses due to the closure of their steel and automobile sectors. Either way, the representation of Radiator Springs is no coincidence and could be argued as a clear critique of contemporary economic development having focuses in Urban areas rather than struggling towns. 

The second installment of the Cars franchise was named 'fairly disastrous' by critics but that doesn't mean it was truly invaluable. Cars 2 introduced the idea of multiple societies into the CCU [Cars Cinematic Universe] with the introduction of the Queen car and the Pope car characters. Cars 2 unlike its other counterparts deals with environmentalism head on but from a Neocapitalist point of view. Neocapitalism, defined as a concept that stresses government intervention in order to have a sustainable economy within a country, is a key concept within Cars 2. The plot centres around 'Allinol', a diesel alternative, designed to be a more environmentally friendly fuel however the conclusion of this plot line is far from an endorsement of fuel alternatives. Through the narrative ideology that those creating alternative fuels have ulterior motives and are essentially damaging the automobile industry this creates a negative reputation for environmentally friendly progression within industries that are major players in fossil fuel production such as transportation and competitive racing. As mentioned before, Cars uses stereotypes in order to communicate key narrative points efficiently [Medhurst] and this is reiterated in the sequel through the unethical, above the law CEO and the threats made to the government [creatively symbolised by The Queen stylised as a Rolls Royce] by 'foreign investors'.  The animators used contrasting colour palettes, dialect and non diagetic sound to really solidify these pro-western ideologies within the narrative. Specifically the use of Japanese stereotypes during the beginning scenes with allusions to retro futuristic hub Tokyo as well as classic Japanese Street aesthetics. Whilst we cannot criticise animators for using stereotypes to signify the characteristics of anthropomorphic vehicles, it's important to note that Pixar, who produced Cars, is an American conglomerate and subsidy of the Disney franchise who are also known for their use of harmful stereotypes within their movies. Thus I would argue that due to the reflection of hegemonic western values within the Cars universe, it's not irrational to assume that they are attempting to mirror and satirise the situation of the United States of America. 

Finally in my analysis of the Cars franchise, I will be looking into the concept of Celebrity and how Celebrity is represented within the Cars Universe. Richard Dyer stated that 'celebrities were constructed by institutions in order for financial gain' which is continuously supported throughout the Cars movies. Competitive racing within the Cars universe is done at the expense of sponsors such as fictional oil company 'Dinoco' and bumper ointment brand 'Rust-eze' this hints at financial or social benefits from competing. The concept of fandom is also visited throughout the franchise with key ideas of 'fans' and 'anti-fans' as well as fan mentality, illustrated by the two McQueen 'fangirl' stereotypes in the opening race of Cars as well as the audience shots in the imperative racing scenes in Cars 2 and 3. The USA, particularly Hollywood, benefits greatly from Celebrity culture and fan mentality. Cars, itself is a product of Star Power, with popular actors such as Armie Hammer and Kerry Washington lending their voices in the Prequel. This was perhaps done to try and combat the commercial failure of the sequel however it definitely mirrors the cycle of celebrity seen within the movies as Dinoco offer the winners of the Piston Cup, the ability to be sponsored by them in the next seasons, a clear example of capitalising off of Celebrity during peak moments. This further supports Dyer's concept of celebrity and also breaks the fourth wall between fiction and industry truth which we could argue is an example of simulacrum and consequently makes the Cars franchise a post modern text. 

Overall, I believe that the Cars franchise serves to mirror the reality of contemporary America, with allusions to the social hierarchy; the role of celebrity; the controversial oil trade and use of hegemonic western stereotypes the trilogy carefully illustrates and comments on some key concepts within American culture. Whilst my above analysis may be lacking specifics, I hope that the gist of my argument is clear and in conclusion the use of both visual markers and subtextual ideologies leads to a satirical, postmodern take on America's circumstance.