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.