Inside Out 2 Review: An Enjoyable Disney Sequel!

In 2015, Inside Out introduced us to the emotions that we all have within ourselves with a wacky bunch of characters that made up the inside of our protagonist Riley’s mind. At 11 years old, Riley’s emotions, Joy, Sadness, Fear, Anger, and Disgust were all that she needed to express with the surrounding around her.

In Inside Out 2, Riley turns thirteen years old and the large red puberty button goes off inside her to Joy and her gang’s dismay. With the emergence of four new and prominent emotions in Riley’s life, Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment, and Ennui (boredom), mayhem ensues in her life and mind on the weekend before high school while attending a hockey camp. Just as Inside Out was able to capture audiences through its comedic and creative script, Inside Out 2 maintains the same creativity and emotional pull of the first film.

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For better or for worse, sequels always tend to be bigger in every way. Filmmakers often try to capitalize on the success of its predecessor to create a new story that exceeds the praise the first received. Although this is extremely difficult despite the studio’s best efforts, Inside Out 2 matches the first film but is also bigger and more complex, mirroring the jump from child to teenager.

The film’s sequel conventions are a perfect way to display how becoming a teenager brings about more obstacles and emotions and this works in Inside Out 2’s favor. Riley’s isn’t a little girl anymore and the pressures of adolescence, impressing your peers, making new friends, and embarrassing oneself along the way is portrayed in the same imaginative way as the first film. The animation and sequences inside Riley’s mind varies in style, making it just as imaginative as Riley herself.

The script is highlighted by clever methods of animation to show visual representations of how our mind works and how everything connects to create our sense of self. It dives into our belief system, how memories impact our beliefs, and how layered these beliefs and memories can be in how we see ourselves. Inside Out 2 does a fantastic job of being an engaging and comedic film that opts for evoking emotions from audiences in how we see ourselves in Riley rather than through a grand adventure.

One of its greatest strengths is how director Kelsey Mann and screenwriters Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein’s scope for the film feels like it is operating on the highest of stakes for a three day weekend in Riley’s life. This was beautifully crafted and resembles the exact way teenagers see situations as having a huge impact on their lives, when in reality (as we all know), only feels that way.

Feeling as if not having the “cool girls” on your side in high school will define how the world sees you for years is a common fear every adolescent experiences. It isn’t until later we realize it is always in our heads. As a result, the emergence of Anxiety is perfectly represented in the way she plans out all possible outcomes in every situation and causes Riley to make decisions that will “protect” her.

The way the film also handles panic and anxiety attacks is amazingly representative of its real feeling that will have an impact on adult audiences and teenagers alike. Inside Out 2 is an enjoyable Disney sequel that may not rank in Pixar’s greatest but it has enough fun loving and emotional draw that will be fun to revisit.

‘Inside Out 2’ Rating – 3.5/5

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