In preparation for the sequel I thought I'd give the first film another try after being underwhelmed by it on its original release and in truth I liked it even less. But Cars was still an okay film, just not comparable with Pixar's normally high standards. I'm sad to say that Cars 2 is the studio’s first flat out bad film.

Yes, the animation is absolutely stunning but this is the very least we should expect from a Pixar movie. Unfortunately, that is also all that is good about a film that seems solely made to shift more merchandise. The uninteresting spy plot dominates the film which provides two problems - too much screen time for Mater (he was bad in the first film but a movie killer in this) and unfavourable comparisons with Bond films and sadly Cars 2 just can't compete.

None of the set pieces are exciting be it the poorly edited races or the spy action sequences. All the jokes fall flat (I don't think I've ever seen a Pixar film I didn't manage to laugh at) and I still have major issues with the entire world of Cars. Of course you could say it is just a film for kids and should be viewed as such but Pixar have always strived for something more yet this film is a cynical and charmless cash-in and nothing more. In the last couple of years all the other major animation studios have upped their game considerably and I can only hope that this is a minor blip for Pixar but it will always be remembered as the film that ended the studios remarkable string of great animated features.