It’s been 14 years since the Supers came out of hiding with a little family animated action/adventure film known as The Incredibles splashed onto the big screen and took everyone by storm as one of the most fun and exciting Pixar/Disney film to come out of their winning streak of films. Now, we finally have a sequel from Brad Bird once more, picking up right where we last left our superhero family about to duke it out with The Underminer. Surprisingly to hear, the original cast members have come back to voice these characters once more along with a complete role reversal of story/character arcs and a new villain to conquer, to save the world one babysitter at a time. Does this super powered sequel maintain all the great qualities of writing, performances, and action to really take it over the top or make it on par with the original satisfying film or does it falter in its story beats or new characters to keep it from being just as good as that first film? Let’s find out and become supers by taking on the dastardly plot at hand for this outing.
The story picks up literally as the Incredibles from Mr.
Incredible (Craig T. Nelson), Elasti-Girl (Holly Hunter), Dash (Huck Milner),
Violet (Sarah Vowell), and Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile & Nicholas Bird) take on the villainous mole man
himself, The Underminer (John Ratzenberger).
However, this encounter goes south real fast for the superhero family as
they cause a ton of city damage to stop Underminer’s drill machine as he gets
away with a ton of money. This gives the
government the ammunition needed to shut down the Superhero Relocation group that
shields the Supers from reappraisals and lawsuits by maintain their cover. This leaves the family on their own and
living in a run-down motel, on borrowed time for only a few weeks. This leads to an opportunity that Frozone
(Samuel L. Jackson) presents to the couple that could lead to a better life and
reinstating superheroes into the public once more.
We are introduced to the business tycoon and advocate for
superheroes Winston Deavor (Bob Ordenkirk) along with his sister Evelyn (Catherine
Keener) proposing to the heroes to have them operate and perform vigilante
justice to a crime ridden city to eventually use as proof that the world needs
heroes. Their main choice to be in the
spotlight is Elasti-Girl, ruffling Mr. Incredible quite a bit by grounding him
to be a stay at home dad to take care of the kids while she resumes hero
work. This happens as a new supervillain
emerges called The Screenslaver (Bill Wise) terrorizes the city with hypnosis and
mind control. It’s up to the super family to not only readjust to normal life,
but for Elasti-Girl to stop Screen Slaver before this villain causes serious
damage and harm to people everywhere.
As you can expect, it’s a sequel so instead of doing a
different story entirely, we have an inverse of the family conflict where the
father must be a parent while the mother gets to live life on the fast lane as
a superhero. It provides an interesting
and clever dynamic shift between the two characters that gives a motivation for
this film to exist. We also see more
supers added to the world along with some time given to the kids and their powers
on display for the action set pieces.
Speaking of which, this has some of the most diverse and truly inventive
action scenes in a superhero film that rival the big releases with the use of
powers fully realized and some truly awe-inspiring moments of peril and kinetic
pacing to it. So, rest assured, it does
continue the story left off from the first film reasonably enough to remind us
why we loved it in the first place, the fantastic family dynamics, high octane
and truly lively action set pieces, and better world building on display here.
However, it’s not all positive unfortunately as the story
does suffer from a few key issues that keep it from being truly
incredible. First off, the plot and
character beats from the family between Mr. Incredible and ElastiGirl are still
the same from the first film, albeit remixed and rearranged to the characters
themselves but keeps it from feeling fresh as a story. There is also the problem of the conflict
itself (more details with the villain section) as it doesn’t quite have the
same intensity and menace as the original film as well as tying into the
character development of the family themselves particularly Mr. Incredible or
Elasti-Girl ironically enough. It does
slow down a bit in the middle act to allow for the story with the family to further develop, especially with Mr. Incredible in the father role this time. This is only a minor issue as it starts and finishes strong as well as
having some wonderful banter/jokes throughout, even if it doesn’t always land
with audiences. The story is an
admirably executed and well-crafted sequel to the original film but it does
feel like the fresh factor is gone this time with the Superhero renaissance in
full swing media wise as well as a weak villain and slow but appreciated character building middle
act that weigh the film down overall.
Let’s get to the cast themselves as many of the voiceover
actors/actresses are reprising their roles after about 14 years have passed
since the first film, along with some new ones to add to the mix. Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter are still
reliably great in their respective roles, as well as sharing some genuine
chemistry between each other when the roles are reversed this time around in
the story. Helen/Elasti-Girl are given
more time to shine as a hero and she takes part in some of the most kinetic,
elaborate action set pieces in the film, holding her own as a
character and hero. On the opposite
spectrum, you have Bob/Mr. Incredible being the father to his dysfunctional
family of misfits from Dash having problems with his homework to Violet having boy trouble, and of course Jack-Jack’s powers becoming more than anyone can
handle, in comical ways. They both go
through the same character beats but reversed this time around, easily remedied
by the fantastic performances from the two actors and their ability to work off
the other characters as well.
We finally come to the character that unfortunately is a bit
of a problematic issue to the film overall and that’s the villain, The Screenslaver. While the reveal of the
character won’t be given in this review (no Spoilers), it is unfortunately easy
and predictable to figure it out after a few scenes with a certain repeated
character interaction with Elasti-Girl. There are moments
when the villain comes close to providing a reason for this conflict especially
in regards to media and manipulation of it to further an agenda over trusting
what the people want. It feels more like
a villain of the week though, with the way this character is written and
ultimately performed, especially by the climax of the film. It doesn’t help that the villain is a stark
contrast to the more compelling and interesting villain from the first film.
As for the rest of the supporting cast themselves, they are
just as reliably great and new to this world from the returning cast to the new
supers present this time around. Dash is
just as likable as the speedster of the team, making for some funny bits with
his family despite not seeing his powers used as effectively or memorably as in
the first one. As for Violet, she tends
to be annoying as a character honestly despite fitting into the theme of family
drama but that is offset by some truly cool use of her powers for some of the
truly memorable parts of the climax. But
Jack Jack steals the show with some of the gut busting laughs with the
expansion of his powers along with one of the inventive action set pieces
involving him, making him a cute and volatile addition to the cast of
supers. Edna Mode voiced by Brad Bird is still a great comic relief character for the film, especially in her exchange with Mr. Incredible and Jack-Jack, leading to one of the funnier moments in the film. That covers the supporting cast
of the family but there are a few other noteworthy ones to mention and discuss.
Let’s also discuss the other supers and a few human
characters that make up the rest of the cast, starting with the two advocates
for supers themselves. Bob Ordenkirk as Winston
Deavor is very energized and fun to hear as the voice of this optimistic
character while Catherine Keener as Evelyn fits the chill, yet intelligent tech
genius partner to Winston’s charisma and love for the spotlight. Samuel L. Jackson is reliably great as the
family’s best friend and partner in superhero work with some truly funny
moments and great action beats surrounding his powers. There are a mirage of supers in this film,
that actually showcase their powers in really eye popping ways along with
providing some truly fun-filled super actions, who are Sophia Bush as Karen /
Voyd (creates portals to transport from one space to another), Phil LaMarr as
Krushauer and Helectrix (Krushauer has Telekinesis while Helectrix is
electrically powered and voiced by the same actor, amazing!), and Paul Eiding
as Reflux (An elderly lava spitting hero).
The cast is a mixture of familiar voices and talented VO artists that breathe
life into each of these characters in conjunction with the technical/creative
crew behind this film.
This leads into the technical components of the film from
art design, CGI and character animation, cinematography and editing, and
finally music with sound design. Let’s
get into the art direction of the film as it brims with a love and respect for
the wild, vivid colors along with the styles of the 1960’s in fashion and architectures
of the settings in the film. From the
sleek, yet comforting looks of the family’s new home along with the stylized
retro look of the technology and places in this story, it nails the aesthetics
again as well as expand the world with varied settings to keep the story always
visually different. They nail the 1960’s
look of the world with ease and it comes through in the settings from the
office buildings to the bustling city streets and the use of retro technology
with a bit of fantasy to their design.
It is essentially the same world from the first film but expanded upon
in a visually pleasing and updated way that improves the look of the world in
this adventure.
That improvement is also noticeable in the CGI and character
animation of the film from their designs to the movement of the characters and
the super charged action set pieces present in the film. Each of the characters have definitely gotten
an upgrade to their models as they look more lively and human than in the
previous film, showcasing the improvements to technology and processors to
render movements smoothly in contrast to the creative use of the limitations
back in 2004. They really utilize these
advancements in animation to great effect with the action set pieces as well as
the super powers on display here, especially with Elasti-Girl’s stretching
abilities in creative, inventive ways during her action scenes. There are some updated looks of the classic
suits as well as a new uniform for Elasti-Girl and the new supers all fit their
visual styles to their costume looks and character designs. The characters and their powers are in top
form animated as well as looking sharp for the adventure.
Let’s finally get into the cinematography and editing of the
film, starting with the way the shots are arranged and composed. This is once again very dynamically intense
and engaging, that matches the level of quality of the live action superhero spectacles
and then some, to create truly striking shots within the film. The editing is in top form as well, allowing
for the action to take center stage and slow down for character interactions or
to develop its very complicated plot, leading to some pacing issues particularly
with the middle act providing some very visible lulls. There is also problems with epileptic imagery,
mainly in the fight between Elasti-Girl and Screen Slaver that could be harmful
to those that suffer to that condition, as a forewarning as the film doesn’t
provide one for the audience. Otherwise,
the film at least begins strong and ends on a fun note as well as sporting some
truly visually striking shots to boot, making it the most vividly beautiful and
energized animated feature to look this good.
Finally, the music is another remarkable part of the film
that once again is helmed by Michael Giacchino once again with a stellar use of
sound design throughout the film. He
brings back the bombastic, creative Jazz, synth score from the first film and
elaborates on those motifs once more in style for the film. It goes well with the film once again but
doesn’t quite make for easy listening on its own and there is the odd feeling
that the music was possibly done digital instead of analog, most likely losing the
powerful rich and brassy sound that gave the score its punch. However, the sound design provides that
power in spades from the punches to the soundscape of the world, it all sounds
rich and lively that helps to counterbalance the times when the score just
falters a bit from its one sound style that works greatly when its synced to
the visuals but falls flat on its own and in certain spots of the film. The sound design is spot on great while the
music is just as good as the first film, even if it’s not quite as memorable or
powerful to listen to, outside of the film or in certain sections of the film
in repeating the same musical motifs from the first or new melodies that don’t
sound as great at times.
Well, it’s been 14 years for a sequel to finally show up and
does it deliver the same quality fun and excitement as the first film? A
resounding yes with an asterix to that answer. The Incredibles 2 works its magic where it
counts in the character interactions and action set pieces utilizing most of
the new and familiar super powers in creative ways. The story is a pretty good, valiant effort to
inverse the personal conflict of the first film with the same characters, albeit
with mixed results in that area. Most of
the characters are great and fun to watch despite some of the supporting cast
members being underutilized or just annoying to watch, adding on top of the
issues with a very mediocre, forgettable villain to boot. It is truly a technical marvel with some of
the most gorgeous and talented artists at work here from art direction,
animation, and sound design. This is one
sequel that rises to the occasion and makes good where it counts, despite the
growing pains and issues that were bound to pop up as this film shows that it
isn’t quite a one-off adventure.
Score **** out of *****
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