A Reel Review: INSIDE OUT 2

In 2015, famed animation studio Pixar dropped their masterstroke INSIDE OUT; a story about emotion that was done so well, that parents and psychologists used it as a learning tool for kids. An Oscar-winner and often regarded as one of the best animated films ever made, the film has become one of Pixar’s finest moments. This year, Pixar and Disney try it again, with INSIDE OUT 2. 

 

Riley (Kensington Tallman), is 13 years old and hitting puberty just as she heads to hockey camp with her best friends. As she juggles trying to impress the cool girls, her familiar emotions; Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phylis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Liza Lapira), and Fear (Tony Hale), get bottled up and sent to the depths of Riley by new emotions; Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Embarrassement (Paul Walter Hauser), and Ennui (Adele Exarchopoulos). 

 

Directed by Kelsey Mann, INSIDE OUT 2 continues the story of Riley inside and out, staying very true to the first film. As Riley as grown, things inside her have changed to, with a brand-new Sense of Self system, built on good memories, installed. Once Anxiety comes in and takes over, her old Sense of Self goes away and begins to rebuild, only this time built with bad memories. 

 

Just like its predecessor, the inner workings of Riley are presented in brilliant metaphors. Things like bottled-up emotions, the Sense of Self system, Stream of Consciousness, Deep Dark Secrets, and even Anxiety Attacks. The manipulation of these effect Riley as she struggles with her new emotions during her hockey camp; trying to impress the coach, the cool kids, while moving away from her good friends. 

 

Emotion is of course the key word, and Pixar hits all the right buttons. Laughs and tears come right where they are supposed to, and the film finds a real-world, I-have-been-there grounding that really works. The entire cast is excellent, as is the soundtrack by Andrea Datzman. 

 

What this all turns into is another brisk, and clever adventure that is a lesson in the way we let our emotions control our actions and reactions. Without being preachy, INSIDE OUT 2 brisk fully and (ahem), joyfully tells a tight coming-of-age story, which once again can be used as a teaching tool. Pixar has delivered another masterstroke. 

 

BOTTOM LINE: See it