One of my all-time favorite film viewing experiences at the
theater was seeing Brad Bird’s “The Incredibles” during its opening weekend.
Watching the film, I instantly fell in love with its gorgeously-designed
animation and exciting superhero action, combined with a sweet message about
family. By the time the movie ended, my boyfriend and I were both so blown away
by what we’d seen that we immediately ducked right back into the theater to
watch it again. And it was just as wonderful a second time around.
All this to
say that any sequel to “The Incredibles” had a lot to live up to. The first
film was released back in 2004, when Hollywood was still in the early stages of
its current superhero movie obsession. Fourteen years later, “The Incredibles”
remains one of the great animated films, and one of the best superhero movies
of all time. So when I’d first heard Pixar was planning a follow-up to the
original, I was apprehensive.
Pixar’s once
sterling reputation has been tarnished ever-so-slightly by their turn toward
sequels, which aside from the “Toy Story” films, have never lived up to their
original films. There seemed little chance that a second “Incredibles” film
could live up to the towering achievement of the first, but I couldn’t help
being eager to see what Pixar had come up with.
Clearly I
wasn’t alone: the movie just had the biggest opening weekend of any animated
film.
Happily, fans
had nothing to worry about. While it doesn’t quite match the first movie’s mix
of heart, adventure, and style (though really, what could?), it’s still an
immensely satisfying continuation of the story.
The sequel,
once again written and directed by Pixar genius Brad Bird (whose credits also
include the masterpiece “The Iron Giant” and “Mission: Impossible — Ghost
Protocol”), picks up exactly where the first film left off.
We check
back in with superhero family, the Parrs: there’s Bob AKA super-strong Mr.
Incredible (voiced by Craig T. Nelson), Helen, AKA extra stretchy Elastigirl (Holly Hunter), their children, invisible teen
daughter Violet (Sarah Vowell), super-speedy son Dash
(Huck Milner), and baby Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile).
In the
film’s world, superheroes have been made illegal and are forced to live by
their secret identities, keeping their powers hidden from the population at
large. But things begin to turn when Helen is recruited by corporate tycoon
Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk)
and his tech-savvy sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener) to be the public face of
their campaign to bring superheroes back into the limelight.
Meanwhile
Bob is left to care for the kids and Jack-Jack, a task made more difficult as
the infant starts to manifest a variety of unexpected powers, including the
ability to shoot lasers from his eyes, combust without warning, and suddenly
vanish into other dimensions. As you might expect, caring for such a child is a
challenge. As with the first film, the family dynamic is just as important as
the super-powered action, as the script weaves in ideas about gender dynamics
and the challenges of parenting in its many forms.
In keeping
with the sequel requirement, “Incredibles 2” is larger in scope than its
predecessor, and Bird’s script has too many ideas tumbling around that don’t
entirely gel into a coherent whole. Without the first film’s solid emotional
core as an anchor, it feels busier and less focused than the original.
Helen’s first
mission pits her up against a baddie known as The Screenslaver,
who’s been hypnotizing citizens through their own monitors and television
screens. Continuing Bird’s interest in examining the role that elites play in
any society, the villain’s ultimate plot hinges on their belief that the
existence of superheroes allows the public to grow complacent, secure in the
knowledge that someone more powerful will swoop in and fix their problems for
them. It’s an intriguing idea, though it doesn’t help that the Screenslaver’s true identity is evident fairly early on.
But the
film’s highlights come in its many ingeniously conceived action sequences. Bird
is a master at staging inventive superhero battles, taking clear delight in
seeing how various superpowers interact with one another. “Incredibles 2” takes
great advantage of the huge leaps forward in detail of animation since the
previous film; these sequences put those in its live-action counterparts to
shame.
The
influence of the James Bond film series shines through: the “Incredibles” film
are spy movies as much as they are superhero movies. It’s also reflected in the
beautifully realized 60s-inspired retro futurist design, an aesthetic that
carries over to Michael Giacchino’s energetically
jazzy, John Barry-influenced score.
Battling
against the weight of expectation, “Incredibles 2” doesn’t have quite the power
of the original, but with plenty of humor, excitement, and heart, it’s still an
exhilarating ride.
This article appears in Jun 20-26, 2018.
