'Soul' is playing in select Philippine theaters. Here's why those who can, should consider watching it

Perhaps no other year will need introspection and self-reflection at the end of it than 2020. After all that’s happened, many experts say we’re not going to come out of the year the same persons as we were in January.

So a movie like Disney-Pixar’s “Soul” comes as a treat. For some, it could even be the necessary guide for their year-end meditation.

It’s screening in the Philippines actually, in places where it is MGCQ — that’s not you, Metro Manila. For the lucky ones in MGCQ, please consider catching "Soul." 

It tells the story of Joe Gardner (Jamie Foxx), a middle school band teacher by day and a passionate jazz pianist by whenever he gets gigs. On the day he becomes a regular teacher — health benefits, pension, the works — Joe also gets the gig of his lifetime. 

Joe Gardner aka Teach, voiced by Jamie Foxx. Courtesy: Disney Pixar

And then he falls into a manhole.

That’s when the story — and the trippy audiovisual adventure begins. Joe tries to escape the Great Beyond, finds himself in the Great Before, meets Soul 22, and learns about personalities or what makes a particular kind of person, that particular kind of person. He meets the Mystics Without Borders and learns about how people become lost souls — all while a super solid piece of can’t-ignore-it music scoring plays in the background.

While music — jazz in particular — is among the threads of the story, music also functions as a vehicle for the storytelling, and what a vehicle it is.

When they are at the Great Beyond, an appropriate overwhelming tone accompanies the scene; at the Great Before, a playful ‘80s electric tune ensues. When the accountant appears, the viewer will hear what sounds like a clock, except it makes you intimidated, and makes you feel as though someone was breathing down your neck.

It must be mentioned that the same guys who scored The Social Network (2010) also scored “Soul,” that is Trent Reznor of the Nine Inch Nails and Atticus Ross.

But here’s the thing about “Soul”: As much as it is easy to get lost in the music and the visuals — we especially loved how the artists made use of simple lines to visualize really complex concepts — “Soul” will pull you back in to the story, to the important questions being asked, and to how they’re being answered.

Courtesy Disney Pixar

And while the heart of the movie is on personhood, “Soul” points to the importance of others, to the importance of a community in helping shape a person.

It’s a wonderful element, and one that is pushed to the front thanks to its accompanying short.

Like all Pixar movies, “Soul” is accompanied by “Burrow,” a short film about a young rabbit digging the burrow of her dreams, only to find she’s unable to because there isn't enough space. She already had neighbors.

So she keeps digging and digging and at the “bedrock bottom,” she finds herself in trouble. The young rabbit then asks for help, and who comes to assist her? The neighbors she’s initially tried to avoid.

There isn’t a more delightful film duo to watch at year's end than “Burrow” and “Soul.” Not only will they make you grateful and lucky to be alive, no matter how dark our realities may seem, but both movies will make you sit down and think, really think, about your life, yourself, and your purpose.

— LA, GMA News