THE STORY – In Metropia, a gigantic city in an alternate future as seen from 1939, private eye Raymond Gunn and his alien companion Eyera are making a living on the edge of society, delving into secrets that some people would rather keep hidden away. After accepting a sleazy spy job related to pop-star Venus Nova, Gunn finds himself drawn into a murder mystery unlike any case he’s taken.
THE CAST – Sam Rockwell, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Waits, Matt Berry, Bobby Cannavale, Alan Tudyk & Kathryn Hunter
THE TEAM – Brad Bird (Director/Writer) & Matthew Robbins (Writer)
THE RUNNING TIME – 119 Minutes
Brad Bird, if nothing else, remains persistent in his pursuit of artistic excellence, and his latest film, “Ray Gunn,” is all the evidence you need to support this claim. For the two-time Academy Award-winning filmmaker, this was the project he so desperately wanted to lift off the ground early in his career, even before the 1998 release of “The Iron Giant.” Years later, even with successes like “The Incredibles” and “Ratatouille” under his belt, it still seemed impossible to get the funds to bring his bold retrofuturist noir to life. Yet the powers that be at Netflix were willing to do what no one else would: give one of today’s more acclaimed animated filmmakers free rein. To no one’s surprise, it was the right decision. “Ray Gunn” is another exemplary entry in Bird’s filmography, even as it reuses overly familiar elements from the films that inspired this long-awaited passion project.
In “Ray Gunn,” Bird welcomes the audience to the future, or what also looks like the past, with Metropia, a society modeled on an art-deco-heavy 1930s timeline where aliens live alongside humans and people can rent jetpacks like they’re Citi Bikes here in New York. It’s a city brimming with lights, yet the criminal underground bubbling beneath the surface is the dark center that keeps it afloat. Sam Rockwell’s Ray, a former police officer turned private eye, doing his best to navigate this world, taking on jobs from frustrated spouses and corrupt convicts to keep the lights on in his small office. Despite the muddy waters he wades through, Ray remains an honest man, refusing to sell his morals (or make money), even as his alien partner Eyera, voiced by Tom Waits, urges him to do so. Soon, Ray is pulled into the orbit of the magnetic superstar Venus Nova (Scarlett Johansson), a hotheaded pop star whose career is in jeopardy as she prepares to debut her new album. Like all noirs, a simple job is pulled through a labyrinth of emotions and deviations, this time involving illegal laser guns, alien mobsters, and a string of murders.
Bird’s obvious adoration of film noir is over every frame of “Ray Gunn,” from the narrative patterns that are staples of the subgenre to the intentional character models that are in the vein of some of the biggest studio system stars of classic Hollywood, including Matt Berry’s Slugsy, which is clearly modeled after Sydney Greenstreet in “Casablanca.” His reverence for film noir is so strong, though, that while it gives “Ray Gunn” a unique identity, it also hampers the narrative somewhat. At times, it makes the film feel a bit too elementary for a director of Bird’s caliber, despite how much he leans into the suggestiveness of the almost Hays Code-esque humor and innuendo between characters. A sense of fatalism, so ingrained in film noir, runs through the film. Sometimes Bird’s inventiveness clashes with a story that plays its cards from the jump, yet his exuberant storytelling keeps “Ray Gunn” entertaining throughout.
The animation behind “Ray Gunn” is fascinating to dissect because one compromise in bringing Bird’s vision to life is the film’s original two-dimensional style, which would’ve been a breath of fresh air, especially given the stunning Netflix marketing poster suggesting what could’ve been. Instead, the animation of “Ray Gunn” aligns more with the traditional three-dimensional style that most animated films, especially in Bird’s recent filmography, follow. The work is still attractive, especially with Bird’s kinetic direction, which makes every set piece dazzle, whether it’s the exceptionally choreographed hover-car chase sequences or an extended elevator fight scene. It’s rare to see camera movement as intentional as Bird’s here, even in an animated film, with “Ray Gunn” grounding the action, giving it weight, and maintaining fluidity, making every move from Ray and Eyera through the sci-fi city feel more alive than most live-action films. And, of course, it’s backed by another breezy, enjoyable Michael Giacchino score, which knows exactly how to play into Bird’s sensibilities as a filmmaker to create a vibe and atmosphere that fit the tone perfectly.
The entire voice ensemble is great, especially Rockwell and Johansson, whose sizzling dynamic brings the film together. Rockwell’s personality melds perfectly into a Bogart-like private dick whose charisma masks the inherent exhaustion of soldiering through each day. His performance aligns well with the hallmarks of the prototypical noir lead spewing gumshoe dialogue with a wink and a nod to the audience, and the same could be said for Johansson’s femme fatale, who brings more than meets the eye to her role. Johansson also double-dips, singing wonderful jazzy ballads, mainly the track “Too Much to Ask,” which singer/songwriter Kimbra wrote. Yet Bird’s secret weapon is Waits, whose signature gravelly voice gives Eyera the edge he needs to perfectly complement Rockwell’s Ray, especially as Eyera is constantly ostracized in a xenophobic society, leaving him to carry most of the thematic weight Bird is bringing to “Ray Gunn” along with other themes of technology, corruption, and identity. It’s more than what you’d typically find in a family-friendly animated film made for the little ones, offering a bit more for slightly older audiences while still keeping its broad appeal across generations.
“Ray Gunn,” while dipping into kiddo’s first noir territory, stays true to itself (and its influences), making for another impressive effort from one of Hollywood’s last remaining animation auteurs. It’s a film about what you’re willing to compromise in a cutthroat, cruel world, and Bird translates that feeling effortlessly, with his journey trying to make the film after all these years paying off as much as Ray’s does. Its strong animation, likable characters, and nods to classic genre tropes will hopefully be the building blocks that get the next generation of cinephiles creeping down “Noir Alley” on TCM. For that alone, “Ray Gunn” is an achievement.
