In Pixar’s animated sequel, Burlington native Amy Poehler reprises her role as Joy, squaring off against new emotions like Anxiety (Maya Hawke) and Envy (Dorchester’s Ayo Edebiri).
By Dana Barbuto/Boston Movie News
Credit Pixar for taking a deep dive into the hypersensitive, irrational chaos of the adolescent brain and attempting to visually recreate its cerebral turmoil into a relatable narrative with silly, talking characters populating a brightly colored fantasy world. It’s not an acid trip; it’s “Inside Out 2,” an animated kids’ movie about neuroscience.
Kelsey Mann, making his feature directorial debut, takes over from Pixar legend Pete Docter (“Up,” “Monsters Inc.”), who helmed the original film to an Academy Award nine years ago. (No pressure, Kelsey). Mann dutifully follows the established playbook, resulting in a movie that, while harmless and vanilla, lacks any distinctive flair. It’s a straightforward story about a 13-year-old girl entering puberty, suitable for children. There’s no mention of training bras, Maxi pads, or sexual impulses. The riskiest behavior Riley (voiced by Kensington Tallman) exhibits is ditching her friends Grace (Grace Lu) and Bree (Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green), sassing her parents, and lying to appear cool. As if.
The story begins with Riley, now sporting braces and acne, heading to a three-day hockey camp. Desperate to make the team, she becomes a try-hard, working overtime to impress the coach and the older, cooler girls. Suddenly, she’s flooded with unfamiliar feelings and self-doubt. Her core emotions—Joy (Burlington’s Amy Poehler), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale), Disgust (Liza Lapira), and Sadness (Phyllis Smith)—find themselves in a cage match for Riley’s psyche against a new set of emotions. Chief among them is Anxiety (Maya Hawke), an energetic orange creature with wild eyes who looks like she’s on the wrong side of a five-day cocaine binge. Anxiety commandeers Riley’s “control” panel with a new crew that includes Envy (Dorchester’s Ayo Edebiri), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), and Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos). (Note to Pixar: Give Ennui and her uppity French accent a spinoff).
The script sends the original five emotions to the far reaches of Riley’s mind, to places like the Vault of Secrets where they encounter Bloofy and Pouchy, the dog and fanny pack stars of her favorite preschool TV show, a spoof on “Blue’s Clues” and “Dora the Explorer.” The OG emotions move from one dangerous situation—a “brainstorm” of tiny light bulbs falling from the sky—to the next as they race back to the frontal lobe, aka “headquarters,” to regain control and restore Riley’s sense of self.
Diane Lane and Kyle MacLachlan voice Riley’s mom and dad, but the parents don’t have much to do except look exasperated and watch their teen overreact and deliver standard insults like “You’re the worst.” Ninety-four-year-old June Squibb occasionally rolls in on a mobility scooter as Nostalgia. She’s always a welcome addition.
Working from a script by Meg LeFauve, co-writer of the original movie, and Dave Holstein, Mann continues the story as competently as anyone else could. The film has some heart and mild humor. It’s watchable, relatable even, especially when the action fleetingly detours into the minds of mom and dad. But “Inside Out 2” is not the knockout kind of picture that Pixar once produced with gems like “Toy Story,” “Wall-E,” and “Up.” Those films packed an emotional gut punch.
Mann accurately portrays puberty swinging in like a wrecking ball on demo day, with a construction worker apologizing for all the dust because “puberty is messy.” Anyone living with a teenager (insert person raising hand emoji) knows that. Puberty reshuffles the deck, and you never know what you’ll get. That uncertainty is not the case with “Inside Out 2.” The emotions might be new, but the story is the same old. The lesson has some tread on it, too, but it’s still valuable. Joy quells Anxiety, so remember to visit your happy place from time to time.
‘Inside Out 2’
Screened June 11 at AMC Boston Common
Rating: PG for some thematic elements
Cast: Amy Poehler, Maya Hawke, Lewis Black, Phyllis Smith, Tony Hale, Liza Lapira, Ayo Edebiri, Adèle Exarchopoulos, Paul Walter Hauser, Kensington Tallman
Director: Kelsey Mann
Writer: Meg LeFauve and Dave Holstein
Running time: 96 minutes
Where to Watch: In theaters everywhere
Grade: B
Boston Movie News 