Incredibles 2 has an exceptionally smart narrative that may be lost on a younger audience.
After a 14-year wait, (what was then before the acquisition) Pixar’s The Incredibles (2004) has finally gotten a sequel—Disney/Pixar’s Incredibles 2. Like the first film, Incredibles 2 is a very thoughtful meditation on the superhero genre—however, it goes a step further. Its intelligence can actually be compared to the likes of The Dark Knight (2008) and Captain America: Civil War (2016). Yes, those are some lofty examples. But it could be what will hurt this phenomenal animated film.
Incredibles 2 opens up right after the events of the first film. And we do mean right after. Other than the slight improvement in animation technology, you can splice the first film with this one and make it an almost 4-hour superhero epic. This means the in-movie time passage is only a few seconds, not like the decade-and-a-half torturous wait of the real world.
The sequel finds the Parr family now exposed. And their heroic activities in stopping the Underminer (the supervillain appearing at the end of the first film) have brought them a lot of disdain from the government (remember how I said it draws some parallels with Captain America: Civil War?). Because of that, Supers around the world must now go back into hiding.
The family is given a “save” when a wealthy businessman (and Super fan), Winston Deavor (earnestly voiced by Bob Odenkirk), and his sister, Evelyn Deavor (Catherine Keener), present an offer: rehab all the heroes’ images by having Helen Parr / Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) publicly fight crime with her more finesse skills. This plan immediately causes a bit of friction between Bob Parr / Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) and Helen, as Bob is a bit envious of her.
As Helen starts her new solo career, Bob must now be the primary caregiver for their three children—Violet (Sarah Vowell), Dash (Huck Milner), and baby Jack-Jack. It’s the superhero allegory for the stay-at-home dad. Helen doesn’t skip a beat in her return to her crime-fighting escapades, but Bob is a different story. He faces the challenges of trying to fix Violet’s love-life (or a lack thereof), helping Dash with his homework (a humorous commentary on New Math), and Jack-Jack’s emerging powers, something first introduced towards the end of the first film.
Like Incredibles, Incredibles 2 has a compelling mystery with the villain. Though it is a bit predictable, it doesn’t detract from the great story (modern films don’t have many options for twists because most roads have already been traveled by previous movies). What sets this sequel apart from its predecessor is that it’s “darker” and deals with many serious issues, yet it doesn’t constantly pound audiences over the head with them.
In one scene, we can see an inkling of the gun debate when Winston recounts the night his parents died from a home invasion. Here, the Supers are metaphorically seen as weapons that could’ve been used to save lives. If the laws banning superhero activities didn’t exist, Winston’s parents would still be alive today. The film stops short of preaching and allows the audience to figure it out themselves.
The film’s treatment of modern family dynamics is exceptional. Scenes of Bob trying to help his super-powered children are heartwarming and accented with the typical Pixar brand of humor. Bob’s frustrations are real and the dynamic character development coupled with the animation and voice-work put the finishing touches on a great protagonist.
As we’ve stated at the beginning, what makes this film strong, may prove to be its Achilles heel. Though there are large amounts of physical humor aimed for the younger demographic, a lot of the dialogue embodies quite a few comedic subtexts. There are also some long spans of no action. It’s something rarely seen in animated films. On a critical level, it worked perfectly in establishing the various themes. However, children may find them to be a bit frustrating after the promise that this is supposed to be a superhero movie—with characters performing awe-inspiring spectacles.
The duration may also prove a bit challenging for children’s attention spans. Running at a meaty (for an animated film) 118 minutes, parents may find their juvenile company a bit restless. This may just depend on the type of child seeing this film. It’s a question of “are they an Up fan?” or “an admirer of Minions?”.
The film’s anachronistic design (carrying over from the first installment) immediately makes Incredibles 2 timeless. The impressively long end credits prove why this Emeryville-based company is still the gold standard in computer-animated films. One scene worth the price of admission alone is Elastigirl’s Elasticycle chase scene. Director Brad Bird’s camera work show why he’s one of the best action directors in the business. Overall, it’s a beautiful film to gaze upon. The Mid Century Modernism art style, though minimalistic, only add to the richness of the story.
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Currently, the film has already destroyed Finding Dory‘s (another Disney/Pixar film) pre-sales Fandango record. Let’s hope young audiences can appreciate Incredibles 2‘s depth of storytelling and spread the word among their peers. After all, we need to have an Incredibles 3.
The film also stars Samuel L. Jackson, reprising his role as Lucious Best / Frozone, and Brad Bird—reprising his scene-stealing role as fashion designer for the Supers, Edna Mode.
Incredibles 2 was released in the United States on June 15, 2018.
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