Joy opens her arms and welcomes Anzaia with a big hug!
Animation giant Pixar’s latest film is a nostalgic, comforting homage to youth that will entertain, delight and remind us of the terrors of our teenage years – after all, who could ask for more?
The history of fascinating animated sequels is chock-full of great works. From Shrek and Puss in Boots to How to Train Your Dragon and Toy Story, there is no shortage of incredible works in the field of animated sequels. Inside Out 2, while not as great as the aforementioned sequels, is no exception to the rule.
The second film in the series is everything we grew to love about the first Inside Out: it’s original, endearing, moving and heartbreakingly relatable. The film guides Riley through her tumultuous adolescence with all the old favorites — joy, sadness, disgust, fear and anger — as well as a bevy of fresh new emotions, chief among them being overwhelming anxiety.
Voiced by Maya Hawke of Stranger Things fame, Anxiety enters the story with a mission most of us are familiar with: stop something terrible from happening because we worry too much. The story that unfolds from this conflict is full of laughs, love, and some embarrassing horror movie moments for Riley.
Riley’s main mission in Inside Out 2 is to make it onto her high school’s varsity hockey team. After learning that her middle school friends will be transferring to a different school district next year, plunging her into the “teenager” vortex, Riley has no shortage of problems to solve throughout the film.
The familiar premise of the first film is thrown away within the first few minutes. This film depicts a major change for Riley, evoking the fear and excitement that comes with leaving childhood behind. Since the first film was released almost 10 years ago, many viewers may be experiencing this change with Riley. Others may be transported back in time to their own life as they transitioned from childhood to young adulthood. Either way, have your tissues ready, as this film will have you in tears all the way to the end. You’re sure to cry at least once.
The ever-changing landscape inside Reilly’s mind adds plenty of fun elements: the ironic “gaps” the characters must cross on their journey, and the swirling lightbulbs that visually represent “brainstorms” are two of the standout moments in this highly creative film.
The other new emotions were cute, but didn’t contribute as much to the story as the anxiety and original emotions. Ennui was completely unnecessary in everyone’s eyes. Apart from a few funny comments, Ennui just sat in front of her phone, embodying boredom and ironically being a boring character herself. Ayo Edibiri’s performance as Envy was enjoyable, but her character failed to contribute in a meaningful way to the story. But there are worse things than being lovable but not central.
Though the film lacks the flash and originality of the original Inside Out, it does exactly what it set out to do: portray the many ways in which life, and by extension our young minds, are changed and expanded by the simple act of growing older.
Be prepared for a flurry of old and new emotions, and sit back and enjoy an hour and a half of compelling characters and a gripping storyline, this is definitely worth a watch.
Gabi Merhen is a senior majoring in communications at Oklahoma University of Science and Arts.
