Brad Bird has established himself as one of the most influential figures in modern animation. From the emotional storytelling of The Iron Giant to the spectacular adventures of The Incredibles, the director has consistently shown that animation can deliver sophisticated, heartfelt stories for audiences of all ages. With Ray Gunn, Bird returns with a project that pays homage to the classic hard-boiled detective genre with a brilliantly imaginative science-fiction touch.
The story takes place in Metropia, a futuristic city imbued with the Art Deco aesthetic of the late 1930s. The story centres on private detective Raymond Gunn (voiced to perfection by Sam Rockwell). When the husband of troubled music superstar Venus Nova (Scarlett Johansson) walks into his office, Gunn is plunged into a mystery that threatens to expose the city’s dark underbelly. Meanwhile, legendary musician and actor Tom Waits lends his distinctive voice to Eyera, Gunn’s one-eyed alien associate, whose unusual abilities make him essential to Gunn’s agency.
Ray Gunn’s film-noir sensibility is a clear nod to the great detective movies of the 1940s, while its towering architecture, flying cars and jetpacks create a futuristic metropolis that often mimics the likes of Blade Runner. There are even hints of Star Wars in its treatment of alien life: a rich alien businessman nicknamed Sludgy (voiced by Matt Berry) is an obvious nod to Jabba the Hutt. Bird blends these influences with enough personality that the film feels like its own creation rather than a mere imitation.
Beneath the stylish visuals and witty dialogue lies a more serious story. In Metropia, aliens are treated as second-class citizens and are often barred from human spaces such as hospitals and other public facilities. This institutional discrimination carries an unmistakable anti-racist message, showing how bigotry can become embedded in everyday life, however technologically advanced a society might be. Gunn’s willingness to work alongside aliens makes him an outsider, giving the detective story a welcome moral dimension.
Granted, the film often leans a little too heavily on hard-boiled clichés: the mysterious, Lana Turner look-alike femme fatale, and the disheveled detective who is having his furniture repossessed and has to sleep in his office after losing his apartment. These are tropes that have come to be expected in a noir narrative. Bird uses them as a way to make his characters more relatable, but there are perhaps one too many clichés here.
Fortunately, the film never lets its ideas overwhelm its entertainment value. Rockwell and Johansson deliver two impressive voice performances as Gunn and Nova. Their story develops into a surprisingly touching romance, adding emotional warmth to the murder mystery.
Ray Gunn is an ambitious, charming and visually distinctive achievement. Its mix of romance, social commentary and old-fashioned detective intrigue makes for one of the most entertaining films of the year, and one with something to say.
