With the current state of Hollywood, animation is the one film medium that consistently feels… good. There have been bad animated films, even recent ones like Pixar’s Lightyear or Disney’s Wish, but animation on the whole seems to have a lot more love poured in than many other films. Think of the Spider-Verse films, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish, Nimona, the list goes on. Luckily, Inside Out 2 is no exception and shows what made Pixar so special in the first place. As with most Pixar films, the film excels in two specific places, its gorgeous 3D animation and its heartfelt story, among many other things.
The easy part to talk about is the phenomenal work that all the artists put into the film. There is no portion of the film that feels unfinished on the visual end, and there’s nothing more to say on the topic. The film takes place in two main settings, the outside world, and the mind of the now-teenager Riley, like the first film. While their world is practically indistinguishable from the real world at times, Riley’s mind is a colorful, wondrous landscape which both provide a nice contrast.
While visuals are an amazing part of a film, Illumination also makes great animation and they rarely put out good films, so let’s go into how great Inside Out 2‘s story is. We start a few years after the first film, with Riley trying to join a high school hockey team known as the Fire Hawks in time for her Freshman year. Throughout, she distances herself from her friends after learning they’d go to a different high school and try her best for the team, a little too far in parts. Meanwhile, in Riley’s mind, the original emotions Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust are in conflict with newer members of the mind, Anxiety, Embarrassment, Envy, and Ennui (“the boredom” as she would say). Anxiety would quickly gain full control of Riley to try and make a new Riley, a better one. The original would try and make their way back to HQ and stop Anxiety while exploring Riley’s mindscape, as the new emotions would continue to change Riley as they believed best, even if they made wrong choices along the way.
One thing great about the film that I enjoyed even over the first one was how it focused more on Riley. Sure, the emotions were absolutely the driving force throughout the film, they need to be, but as Riley grows into her own independent person, we get to know her and what she wants more than ever. What’s great about this though, both Joy and Anxiety’s actions throughout this entire movie were to keep control of who they wanted Riley to be. Joy was more focused on the beliefs and memories that she helped develop, trying to keep Riley with her friends and just have fun rather than focus on her desires. On the other end, Anxiety was entirely focused on making Riley the best she can be to get on the hockey team and make the “right” friends in high school but disregarded how Riley’s a human who has friends and has a limit.
As well, it’s a struggle that I think most people can relate to, especially the readers of the Tribe who typically are still in our school. High school is hard for everyone, and when you’re actively set towards a goal, it’s all the harder. Riley is trying to not just make, but impress the hockey team, which is something that many have experienced with sports, clubs, even classes. Riley also deals with intense anxiety throughout the film, and even with the cartoony anthropomorphic portrayal, it still manages to be accurate. She nearly lost friends, made some bad choices, and even dealt with a panic attack because of this overwhelming feeling, all in a few days. No matter how society changes, Inside Out 2 portrays emotions and feelings that will stand the test of time. In the words of my father, teenagers will never change, and while that’s usually said for something petty or insignificant, you can go a step further and say that people will never change as a whole. Since civilization started, we’ve felt the good, we’ve felt the bad, and we just have to help each other to turn out the best we can. As Riley’s friends and family have supported her and loved her through everything, be there for those you care for, and don’t be afraid for others to care for you in your time of need.
