Incredibles 2 (2018)

Movie Info

I remember practicing super-powers with my family…

When the battle against the Underminer brings the outlawing of superheroes once again to a head, Bob, Helen, Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack are out on the street with no source of income.  Winston Deavor and his sister Evelyn intends to change that law by making Elastigirl the face of reform.  Now, Bob is stuck at home with the kids while Elastigirl is out saving the world…but who is the Screenslaver and what are the goals of the Screenslaver’s attacks?

Written and directed by Brad Bird, Incredibles 2 is a sequel to the hit 2004 Pixar-Disney film The Incredibles.  Following Pixar’s Coco in 2017, the film was released to positive reviews and a strong box office.  The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.

Elastigirl battles for justice…and pizza delivery men!

I really enjoyed The Incredibles.  It was one of my favorite Pixar films and has more creativity than many of their films.  I looked forward to Incredibles 2, but I missed it at the theater.  Watching it, the film is good, but it doesn’t quite have the fun of the original.

The movie does have a fun historical tie.  With The Seduction of the Innocent in the 1950s, superheroes were under attack.  In the early ’60s (where Incredibles 2 seems loosely set), Marvel Comics rejuvenated the superhero world with their brand of superheroes including the Fantastic Four…which have a striking resemblance to the team.  The progression and “return” of superheroes in the film is a good lead up for a new age of heroes much like what happened in the comic book market.  The story also questions the whole idea of heroes bring violence or violence brings heroes which has been a comic book theme for years.

I’m waiting for the Edna-Jack-Jack stand-alone movie

The layered story is told with great voice actors.  Craig T. Nelson, holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, and Samuel L. Jackson all return from the original film along with the director Brad Bird returning to play Edna.  Huckleberry Milner replaced Spencer Fox as Dash while Jonathan Banks steps in as Rick Dicker who was formerly voiced by Bud Luckey who died in 2018.  Bob Odenkirk and Catherine Keener are the brother-sister team of the Winston and Evelyn and Sophia Bush, Phil LaMarr, Barry Bostwick, Isabella Rossellini, and Usher provide vocals in smaller roles.  Pixar regular John Ratzenberger once again plays the Underminer who appeared at the end of the first film and the beginning of this movie.

Will the Incredibles fight again!?!

Visually, the movie is strong.  The debatable part is if they are any stronger than the previous entry…and should they be?  You want the movies to flow together and I thought The Incredibles looked great, but there are probably improvements since the first film.  I think you can watch the two films together as one solid film and thematically they look the same (and that is a plus for me).  I do like the expansion of the Elastigirl’s abilities visually and the Portal-esque ability of the Voyd’s powers.

Incredibles 2 is a good movie, but it isn’t a great movie like the first film.  It is a lot of fun and continues to develop the family theme while also developing the idea that the film is a period piece and things have changed in regards to equal rights and other social aspects of the movie.  If the film pushed it harder, it would no longer be a film for children and might be too edgy, but it also doesn’t seem to push it quite enough.  Regardless, I’d love to see The Incredibles ride again in some form or another…and with a new world of heroes, the possibilities are endless.

Related Links:

The Incredibles (2004)

The 91st Academy Award Nominations