The “House of Mouse” has done it again – for the most part. You see, while it can feel forced at times, Onward has just enough of that Pixar movie magic to make it all work in the end. Trust me, this is enjoyable stuff, with a slew of dazzling (not to mention thrilling) moments sprinkled throughout. The voice work is really fun as well, especially from Pratt and Holland, who have busloads of charismatic chemistry between them. Yep, it’s got all the zip and energy you’ve come to expect from ‘ol Pixar, with a large helping of vibrant imagery and playful humour to boot (I especially enjoyed the Weekend At Bernie’s-esque moments. You’ll see). Then there’s the heavy-handed life lessons and heartfelt messaging. And while they also hit their marks here (there was lots of sniffling going on in my screening), it’s not AS effective as we’ve seen. This film never reaches the emotional heights of the Toy Story outings, or Coco, or Up, or WALL-E and so on. Regardless, this family centric fantasy casts a feel-good spell on kids and kids at heart. The hold just might not be as strong as you’re used to.