INSIDE OUT 2 (2024)

Genre: CG Animation
Director: Kelsey Mann
Cast: 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
Runtime: 1 hr 36 mins
Rating: PG
Released By: Walt Disney
Official Website: https://www.facebook.com/Pixar

Opening Day: 13 June 2024

Synopsis: Disney and Pixar’s “Inside Out 2” returns to the mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as Headquarters is undergoing a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions. Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust, who’ve long been running a successful operation by all accounts, aren’t sure how to feel when Anxiety, Envy, Ennui and Embarrassment show up.

Movie Review:

We knew it. Life isn’t as straightforward as having five basic emotions, but you have to admit that Pete Doctor’s Inside Out (2015) is one of the greatest animated film ever made, and a brilliant way of explaining how and why we feel, behave and react – especially to the younger crowd.

Nine years after the 88th Academy Awards’ Best Animated Feature winner introduced us to Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger and Disgust, we are treated to a sequel which acknowledges the other emotions in our heads. A quick recap: the original five emotions are the inner workings of the mind of the human protagonist, a young girl named Riley. In this movie, they are joined by Envy, Ennui (that’s boredom in French!), Embarrassment, and their leader, Anxiety. And how timely it is, because Riley is experiencing puberty.

Riley has turned 13 and is looking forward to spending time with her two best friends at hockey camp. On the way to the campsite, Riley learns that her friends are going to a different high school, and that throws her balance for a bit. At the camp, she meets a group of cool and popular senior hockey players, and she tries blend in, with some disastrous results.

This is where the fun begins, because we see what’s happening in Riley’s head with the original and new emotions going through a ton of things. Joy and her team become literally suppressed (kudos to the filmmakers for coming up with the idea of flinging the five characters into a glass jar, and then into a vault), while Anxiety takes over the control panel with her mates. Without revealing too much, every minute of what goes on in Riley’s mind is superbly executed. With the eye catching visuals and the voice cast’s committed performance, kids will enjoy the zaniness while adults will appreciate the clever approach of presenting adolescence.

We are also impressed with how the 96 minute movie directed by Kelsey Mann (in his feature directorial debut) introduces new concepts. There is the “Sense of Self”, which is a section in the mind that holds memories and feelings that make up a person’s core personality. There is also a tube that conveniently launches bad memories to the back of the mind – imagine all the negativities that are piled up there, which is essentially a catastrophe waiting to explode. It is really refreshing to watch a show under two hours that is intelligent and entertaining.

Speaking of humour, one of the greatest moments is when the original emotions meet Bloofy, a 2D character from a preschool show (from Riley’s toddler days), and Lance Slashblade an overly dramatic and supposedly dashing Playstation style character from a video game (which Riley used to play). These scenes are easily the most hilarious bits in the movie. Amidst the many Easter eggs scattered through the film, it’s cool to know that Lance Slashblade is voiced by Yong Yea, a professional video game voice actor who has contributed his voice in the popular Final Fantasy video game series.

While this sequel may not make you cry buckets like the first movie (we miss you, Bing Bong), it is a worthy follow up with beautiful animation that packs an emotional punch.

Movie Rating:

(A worthy sequel to one of the greatest animated films of all time, this trip to Riley's mind tells an intelligent and entertaining story of the many emotions we have)

Review by John Li