Friday March 06, 2020

This road movie set in a world of elves has its moments, but by Pixar standards, it doesn’t quite cast a spell.

“Onward,” Pixar’s latest invention, begins with a bit of what is now called “world building.” The universe of this animated feature is one of elves, dragons and wizards. Unfortunately, as a prologue explains, magic is tough to learn. A flash forward illustrates how mythical creatures, lulled by the invention of light bulbs, smartphones and other technology, gradually forgot how to cast spells.