Inside Out 2
Rating: 4.5/5
By: Nathaniel Simpson
Nine years after the release of Pixar's Inside Out, a film dealing with the emotions of an 11-year-old girl, came out, the iconic animation studio releases the anticipated sequel, timing it perfectly for the audience of the first film. The first film is considered a favorite by many fans, and I think it did a fantastic job exploring emotions that everyone has felt and tries to paint a picture for audiences of all ages on why you feel certain ways and do different actions based on how you feel. 2024 is the perfect time for Inside Out 2 to be released, as the young fans of the original are now grown up enough to understand more complex themes and emotions that young Riley will obtain over time. I think this is one of those rare instances where the sequel is surprisingly better than the original, and I think director Kelsey Mann does a fantastic job of pulling on the heartstrings here, as well as crafting such a beautiful and imaginative Pixar sequel.
Riley (who is played by Kensington Tallman in this installment) is 13 now, and the emotions in her head have finally figured out a way to all get along and work together seamlessly. Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale, replacing Bill Hader), and Disgust (Liza Lapira, replacing Mindy Kaling) are all incredibly satisfied with how Riley is doing in school and on the hockey team, and life could not be better... until she hits puberty.
With them getting a whole new control console and new additions around headquarters, they think it couldn't be too bad. That is until four new emotions show up: Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edibiri), Ennui (Adèle Exachopoulos), and Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser). With Anxiety as the leader of the new emotions, she thinks it would be a good idea for her to be in charge when Riley goes off to a hockey camp, where she hopes to impress the high school hockey coach. When Joy and her crew are now booted out of headquarters and Anxiety starts to take over, they must figure out a way to get back and save the relationships Riley has made, as well as trying to make her become herself again.
The first thing I noticed as this film concluded was how tight and concise it was compared to its predecessor. A problem I had with the first one is that there are parts in the middle that feel very drawn out and long, like the filmmakers weren't sure how to continue the plot towards the end and felt stuck in the moment. This movie, on the other hand, moves at such a nice pace and really works through the plot really nicely and smoothly. I think this story is much more complex and interesting as well, diving deeper into character development and really fleshing out a plot that works on all fronts.
I am ecstatic they gave deeper character development to characters like Anger and the other side emotions, ones they kind of glossed over in the first film. At the same time, the new emotions, especially Anxiety and Envy, are fantastic, with great chemistry between Edibiri and Hawke. They are tons of fun to watch together and just really enjoyable characters. I also think they made a great decision in really exploring Riley's story, giving her and her young hockey career a giant storyline for the viewers to follow. I feel like there was major lack of Riley in the first film, and this movie really gave us what we needed for her character.
I honestly think the story here is leagues better than the one in the first film. While I'm not saying the story for the first film is bad at all, but I think Pixar presents a more complex and emotionally mature movie. Like I mentioned before, this is the perfect time for Pixar to release this film as their audience from the first movie is now old enough to understand the more mature themes and emotions that are present here. Consider the role Anxiety plays. There are parts in this film I won't spoil, but I think they're done so incredibly well, especially the climax of the film. The filmmakers really craft a story that is so relatable and gripping that these audience members can all easily relate to.
At the same time, the comedy here is fantastic. I would say this movie is much funnier than its predecessor, and gives some of the characters some great moments throughout. I have to mention the character of Anger in this regard, who easily becomes the most enjoyable emotion in this picture. He has some fantastic one-liners, and there is a bond of hatred which turns to friendship between him and a new character here that is absolutely hilarious. I am still quoting a specific scene Anger has with this character with others who have already seen this movie.
In terms of the performances here, everyone is on their A-game. The returning ensemble cast (with the addition of two new members in the original group of emotions) are great together, with wonderful chemistry and charming personalities. Hawke is a stand-out here, delivering a fantastic performance as Anxiety that could easily make her one of the most beloved modern Pixar characters. The entire cast does a great job of really giving their all to these characters, and it translates amazingly on the screen.
It comes as no surprise that the animation and graphics are absolutely beautiful here. It blows the first film out of the water with the graphics they have presented here, especially in terms of the real world scenes. There are moments that show Riley playing hockey during the camp she attends, and the graphic and animation are next-level. It feels like they understand exactly where to look when playing hockey, and it really jumps off the screen. Pixar keeps outdoing themselves every time they release a new film, and there is a reason they're perhaps the best animated studio working today.
I adore this film, and I think director Kelsey Mann does such a fabulous job of taking this film and translating it onto the screen so well. From the story to the characters to the beautiful animation, I think this film outshines the first one in many regards. I think this is a fantastic sequel, showing how to continue a story in such a way that makes it better than what they did the first time around. I honestly do hope we see a third film in this franchise, because I think there is so much more that the filmmakers at Pixar can tell with this story and these characters.
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