Inside Out 2

A sequel to the 2015 hit where the characters are emotions in a girl’s head, trying to help her through life. This time she hits puberty and so Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust are joined by some newcomers - Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment and Ennui.

I’ve read a lot about the Pixar slump of the last ten or so years and I agree that while they’ve not been making bad films, they’ve not got that sheen on them any more. Unfortunately their best (read, most personal and vulnerable) films in that period, Luca and Turning Red, have been commercial failures - partly stunted by their bewildering choice to just dump the films on Disney+.

So it’s back to sequels they go, it seems. There’s plenty of fresh material to mine with Riley growing up and discovering new emotions but the film’s central conceit, already a bit of a flimsy analogy that they managed to get away with last time, is really starting to collapse under the weight of all the different characters and story mechanics.

It’s a very relatable film though, which hopefully will provide some solace to those going through puberty or just about to, and its depiction of anxiety comes from the left-field but rings true.

I don’t want to over-step here but it feels like they perhaps shied away from this being a gay storyline? My instinct while watching the film was that Riley had some sort of crush on Valentina, then later on we learn that Riley has a ‘Deep Dark Secret’ that’s ‘not ready to come out’. But then there’s an end-credits scene that explains the secret and it all feels like a bit of a cop out.

I mention this because of all the Pixar films Inside Out is the most grounded in reality, and reality is messy. So it wouldn’t be unheard of for awkward teenagers to develop unexpected awkward feelings toward each other. Maybe if you are making a film about puberty, don’t aim for a ‘U’ rating?

Another competent, enjoyable, but ultimately unremarkable film from Pixar.