Inside Out 2

This is a version of review appearing on ABC Statewide Mornings across regional Victoria on June 27, 2024. 

(PG) ★★★★

Director: Pete Docter.

Cast: (voices of) Amy Poehler, Maya Hawke, Kensington Tallman, Liza Lapira, Tony Hale, Lewis Black, Phyllis Smith, Ayo Edebiri, Lilimar, Grace Lu, Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan, Paul Walter Hauser, Yvette Nicole Brown.

The sequel light was going off at Pixar headquarters.

I still stand by what I said - Inside Out is the greatest Pixar movie there is. It's superlative script took its Herman's Head-like premise and infused it with sparkly fun and sincere sentiments that examined the trials and tribulations of pre-teen life. It turned emotions into characters into themes into plot points into everything. And it did it all effortlessly, but with hilarity and heart.

Can a sequel top that? Or even match that?

Of course not. But Inside Out 2 is smart enough to follow the tried-and-true path of sequels since time immemorial - do the same thing, but more. It falters along the way, backing itself into a corner so that it has to find the most ridiculous way out, but it's still a stunningly real coming-of-age story told predominantly via an absurdist blend of pop-psychology and Pixar pizazz. 

In the first film, Riley was 11 and grappling with the pressures of moving to a new state, a new school and new life. Here, she's 13 and off to ice hockey camp, where she has to struggle with a combination of new emotions, new pressures, and a new-found desire to fit in. Meanwhile, in the control room of her mind, her core emotional team of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust find themselves on the outer as the Puberty Team of Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment take over.

Aside from its predecessor, it's hard to think of a coming-of-age film that is as realistic as this that doesn't include a romantic arc. Riley's inner struggle is the focus - the main villain is her own Anxiety, while the hero is her own Joy. What was true in the first film is true here - the anthropomorphism of her emotions is not just a cute stunt. It digs into the very nature of self as we determine who we are as we get older. There's a line here that asks whether Joy becomes less relevant as an emotion as we get older, and ouch, that hurts.

The whole thing is incredibly relatable and, as with the first film, it's wonderfully written. Her emotions are fully fledged characters and they're also pivotal to the plot and the film's thematic core. And once again, the jokes are strong, the world-building is incredible, the production design fun, and there's enough silliness to appeal to the younger kids who are yet to experience the heavy themes firsthand.

Pixar's real triumph is making something that anyone who was ever a teenager can probably relate to. Whether it be doing stupid stuff when we've let Anxiety take the wheel or lying about who we really are in order to fit in or bottling up our emotions to try and get by, Inside Out 2 sees you, knows you and is you. 

The biggest flaw is a deus ex machina that helps dig the characters out of a massive hole in the final act. Having pushed its heroic five original emotions to breaking point, the script struggles to unbreak things. What makes matters worse is that it throws back to the worst part of the movie in order to save the day, thereby repeating the mistakes made earlier.

But there is a lot to love, the main thing being the emotional struggle that its teenaged heroine and her ragtag team of feelings face as they try to find their place in the world and not ruin the rest of their lives. Being a teen is tough, and Pixar gets it.

Jim Henson: Idea Man

This is a version of a review airing on ABC Victoria's Statewide Mornings program on June 13, 2024.

(PG) ★★★★

Director: Ron Howard.

"I love you, man."
"I love you, frog."

I love The Muppets. When people ask me my favourite movie of all time, which they often do, I give them three: Raiders Of The Lost Ark, The Wizard Of Oz, and The Muppet Movie. The Muppets was my favourite TV show as a kid. Hell, Animal was my imaginary friend when I was a kid. We went to the Noorat Show together.

I watched every episode of The Muppets Show when I was young, and I love the first two Muppet films - The Muppet Movie and The Great Muppet Caper (and deeply respect The Muppets Take Manhattan). But I'm not a completist. I've seen the 2011 reboot and its sequel, but I still haven't watched The Muppet Christmas Carol or Muppets From Space, nor have I gotten around to watching Muppets Now or Muppets Mayhem. It's almost as if a significant part of The Muppets died for me when Jim Henson did.

Watching Ron Howard's touching but honest portrait of Muppets' creator Jim Henson takes me back to that childlike wonder I had for those ridiculous marionettes/puppets and their oddball antics. They were bizarre creations, even back in the '70s and '80s, and continue to be. And at the heart of the weirdness and heartfelt insanity - at least in the glory days - was Henson. 

So much of Henson was imbued into everything he did, not just in The Muppet Show. Kermit was his alter-ego, but his aspirations for a better world shone through in his work on Sesame Street and Fraggle Rock. His boundless artistry, his passion for classic storytelling, and his desire to push the limits of a long-ignored artform are part of what made The Dark Crystal and Labyrinth so great. 

These are the things that Howard brings to the fore in the documentary. Early on, we see a clip of Orson Welles calling Henson "a genius" and it's hard to disagree. Through Henson's experimental early work and formative years honing his craft in advertisements and late night TV, we get a picture of a driven and immensely talented young man.

That drive had its downside, and Idea Man doesn't back away from that. His children had to work on his creative projects in order to spend time with him, and his wife rarely saw him or got her dues or got to contribute, despite her obvious skills. Everything gets sidelined - even his health - to make way for his artistry.

It's part of the tragedy buried in this beautiful documentary, along with his early untimely death. Henson crammed more in to one life than most people would into three, but it came at a cost. He burned bright and fast.

Unfortunately Idea Man is also too bright and fast. An ideal beginners guide, it will frustrate fans who have heard much of this before. Howard has access to some previously unseen material, which still makes it worthwhile, but the bulk of the content is familiar territory. The best bits are the recollections of his co-workers - for more of that, check out the doco Muppet Guys Talking.

But it's hard to go wrong with such great talent discussing such a great talent. It's an oddly heartwarming and heartbreaking tale, told beautifully. Howard has enough sense to let much of Henson's own art tell the story, along with the voices of those who knew him well, including Henson himself, and some excellent behind the scenes footage. Henson was gone too soon, and this doco is a great gateway into his incredible legacy.