Bao (2018)

I went seeing Incredibles 2 about a month ago and you know what stuck with me the most? Bao, the short animated film that preceded the movie. Not only because it's the first short film at Pixar directed by a woman, Domee Shi, but because it's a small masterpiece. 

The film follows a Chinese-Canadian woman. She just made dumplings for her husband and she, but he eats in a hurry and leaves for work, leaving her sad and alone. When she is about to eat her Boazi, one of them comes to life, it grows into a little dough boy and she begins to raise it as a son.

It is a very simple but equally touching and moving story of a woman, one of the many, who is suffering of empty nest syndrome and her way of coying with it —the relationship this woman develops with the dumpling essentially replaces that she had with her son. It is not a new theme, nor extremely complex, but Bao handles it with sensitivity and heart. It shows how hard is dealing with the fact that your son has grown, that he doesn't need you anymore, that he's ready to move on with his life. It also portrays that kind of love where you'd rather destroy that person than let him/her go. 

Bao doesn't only do that though. Being written and directed by a Chinese woman, this short film also deals with a racial theme. When the son returns home, he introduces his mother his soon-to-be-girlfriend who is not Asian. Through this, Shi addresses the fear of bringing your girlfriend/boyfriend to meet a disapproving parent, which can be felt with all ethnicities, whether or not you are racist. 

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

The animation is brilliant, just like you would expect from Pixar. It's bright and colourful, highly detailed and both characters and backgrounds are very striking. The music is equally beautiful and fits very well the story.

Ultimately, Bao is a short gem. I'm not sure little kids will fully understand it —actually, they could be confused, even frightened by it— but they I think they would enjoy the charming story and characters.