Onward is a movie about growing up and all the trials and tribulations that we encounter on the path to adulthood. Whether facing the complex and awkward peer relationships of high school, avoiding hissing feral cave unicorns, or figuring out who you want to be, we can all relate to some aspect of this journey.

Ian Lightfoot (voiced by Tom Holland) is your typical suburban, teenage elf: he goes to school, hates his mom’s new centaur boyfriend, Colt Bronco, and is continually embarrassed by his nerdy older brother, Barley Lightfoot (Chris Pratt).

The movie starts on Ian’s 16th birthday. Ian has a chance encounter with an old friend of his father’s at a fast food restaurant that morning. The friend recounts what he knew of Ian’s father, specifically that “He was bold!”. This brief interaction plants an idea, which catalyzes within Ian, moving him to his first tentative steps on the path to courage.

Otherwise, the day is a disaster and his lack of self-confidence serves only to hamper him. Just as Ian gets up the nerve to invite some kids from school to his birthday party (*the* most awkward invitation imaginable), his brother roars up to the school, tires a blazing, proudly proclaiming his trusty vanicorn steed, Gwenivere, has arrived to pick up Ian. (Leading to an entirely *more* awkward retraction of the invitation.)

Sensing the day was disappointing, his mother, Laurel Lightfoot (Julia Louis-Dreyfus), presents Ian and Barley with a gift from their father, who died before Ian was born: a wizard’s staff, powered by the rare Phoenix stone, and a spell to bring their father back for 24 hours.

But nothing in life ever happens that easily.

An accident stalls the half-completed resurrection process, and the brother’s find themselves on the verge of an adventure. And as the movie reminds us early on: “You have to take risks in life to have an adventure.”

No matter how much he wants to meet his dad for the first time, Ian is less than enthusiastic to embark on a quest. His brother, however, is an avid tabletop gamer and knows all the rules, from where to find a manticore to leveling up to which path to take to guarantee success.

Thus, their urban quest begins. As with all quests, there are some important steps and rules to ensure success.

First, you must select your character and weapon. Ian is thrust into the role of wizard, simply by his father’s choice of a wizard’s staff, and the need for someone to cast spells. Barley tries his hand at the staff, but ultimately knows himself well enough to know he is no wizard. Uncertain of his own strengths and abilities, Ian is reluctant to take on this role. Luckily, his brother, the experienced gaming expert, is there as a guide, to nudge, push, and encourage Ian to trust himself and try new things.

Next, a new wizard can’t start with the hardest spell (resurrection) and expect it to work. Ian immediately learns he needs practice with his wizard’s staff if he wants to be able to complete the most complex of spells- bringing someone back from the dead, if only for a short time.

Finally, there are always challenges to overcome. But it is exactly these challenges that help us to gain new experiences and level up. From a marauding gang of pixies who forgot how to fly, to hissing feral cave unicorns, to centaur cops (Lena Waithe, notably the first openly queer character in a Pixar movie), the path of this quest is filled with obstacles and challenges to overcome.

It is clear early on that Ian’s insecurities and doubts are holding him back in life. Timid and uncertain, he doesn’t have any friends, and can barely talk to peers in his class. Confronted with Barley’s big and courageous personality, Ian seems to shrink into the background, much more comfortable to be a wallflower.

But there is no growth in hiding, from ourselves or from the wider world. It is only when we step outside our comfort zone and engage with the world that we get to the next level.

Onward reminds us that the business of growing up is challenging and painful at times. But that doesn’t mean we have to stop playing, or to stop learning and growing. Life, like any good quest, is best lived when we continue to build our skills, admit our strengths and weaknesses, and that the quickest route through is not always the best.

When teenage elf brothers Ian and Barley Lightfoot (voices of Tom Holland and Chris Pratt) get an unexpected opportunity to spend one more day with their late dad, they embark on an extraordinary quest aboard Barley’s epic van Guinevere. Like any good quest, their journey is filled with magic spells, cryptic maps, impossible obstacles and unimaginable discoveries.

But when the boys’ fearless mom Laurel (voice of Julia Louis-Dreyfus) realizes her sons are missing, she teams up with a part-lion, part-bat, part-scorpion, former warrior – aka The Manticore (voice of Octavia Spencer) – and heads off to find them. Perilous curses aside, this one magical day could mean more than any of them ever dreamed.

Voice Cast: Chris Pratt, Tom Holland, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Octavia Spencer, Mel Rodriguez, Lena Waithe, Ali Wong
Director: Dan Scanlon
Original Score Composed by: Mychael Danna and Jeff Danna