Apparently, it is the summer of sequels to movies from 2015! A few weeks ago, we got Furiosa, and this past weekend, we got Inside Out 2. 

When Inside Out was released, it was heralded as a return to form for Pixar, which had just come off a run of films (Monsters University, Brave, Cars 2) that were not as universally acclaimed as the studio’s earlier work. Inside Out was praised for its imaginative premise and moving message about how all of our emotions– including sadness– have their place and are important for us to experience. Along with many people, I found it deeply resonant (like the main character Riley, I saw the film soon after moving to a new city) and it was a certified tearjerker. It became an instant classic. 

Now, nearly ten years later, the sequel arrives, also on the heels of another lackluster run for Pixar (Elemental, Lightyear, Turning Red, Luca). And with the state of this summer’s box office, this film has a lot riding on it. Will Inside Out 2 rescue theaters? (turns out, yes!) Will it be a refreshing return to form for Pixar? Will it live up to the original? And will it, like the original, make me cry???

Inside Out 2 fast forwards one year to Riley as a thirteen-year-old, heading to a summer hockey camp, with the hope of impressing the coach and players on the high school team. This new experience, as well as the onset of puberty, means new emotions, so Joy and the original emotions– Anger, Disgust, Fear, and Sadness– find themselves face to face with the likes of Ennui, Embarrassment, Envy, and the most powerful one of them all: Anxiety. When Anxiety’s efforts lead her to exile the original emotions to the back of Riley’s subconscious, Joy and the gang must fight to get back to the control room and stop Anxiety from hurting Riley. 

While the first film focused on Joy coming to terms with the helpfulness and value of Sadness, in this one, she has learned her lesson and readily accepts the new emotions. Cleverly, the conflict comes then from the group learning how to manage Anxiety and turn her into a force for good, rather than destruction. The film also explores Riley’s core belief in herself. Riley goes from believing full-heartedly that she is a “good person” to, as Anxiety takes over, believing that she’s “not good enough.” In the end, Riley’s core belief morphs into realizing that she, like her emotions, are complex. She can be a good friend at times and a bad friend sometimes. Sometimes she’s capable, sometimes she’s not. She is not her emotions, but she is responsible for what she does with those emotions, both good and bad. But even with all of these contradictions, she can still be loved and accepted by others. 

So yes, I did cry at this revelation. So did my friend I saw it with, and, I suspect, many other adults in the theater. And while the little kids I had in my theater seemed engaged with the movie, like the original, I think the prime age is tween/young teenager and up.

On a craftsmanship level, Inside Out 2 makes the most of the opportunity to imagine new parts of Riley’s brain. There are a few scenes where the film features characters with different animation styles, which the animators clearly are having a lot of fun with. Occasionally the wordplay borders on being an exercise in cleverness rather than helpful to the story, but most are used very well (“sarchasm” and “stream of consciousness” are standout sequences). And of course, the voice work continues to be excellent. Amy Poehler shines in the role of Joy, and Maya Hawke is a wonderful addition as Anxiety. After this and seeing her earlier this year in Wildcat, I’m very impressed with her range. 

Despite the themes of Inside Out 2 being interesting evolutions from that of the original, the plot, feel, and beats of the movie play out very similarly to the first, in a way that feels a little too safe, even if it is effective. I did not test this, but I suspect watching both movies back to back may be a bit tiresome because they are so similar. But having had a break between them, it’s fun to go back into this world, and to appreciate the creativity and imagination of this metaphor for the mind. I don’t think this sequel captures the same lightning in a bottle as the first. However, the premise is so strong, and Pixar has a baseline standard of excellence that elevates even its weakest projects. These elements combined means Inside Out 2 is just too appealing to resist. 

In the end, I think Inside Out 2 will be remembered as one of Pixar’s best sequels, but not its most original or ambitious. (It’s also perfectly engineered to keep making Inside Out movies for as long as they want to/need cash). Whether you want a laugh, a cry, an existential crisis, a good time, or some substantial entertainment for kids, Inside Out 2 has something for everyone.

-Madeleine D.