Inside Out
2015, Pixar/Walt Disney
Pixar continues to build their library of critical and box office successes with this unusual, original and clever story. It's a deeply engaging peek inside the mind of an eleven-year-old girl, brought vividly to life in ways that make it clear the writers did their homework; indeed, they consulted numerous psychologists and other professionals in the field of human emotions. Everything about the film is truly remarkable; the love and care that went into its making is clearly up on the screen. Yet... as the credits rolled, I almost felt as though I'd spent an hour and a half on the couch, being assaulted by lights and sounds and questions about myself. It was, in short, intense—almost too intense. Still, I cannot deny its greatness and value as a true work of art.
Be sure to see the side-splitting spin-off short, Riley's First Date?
DKS 4/6/22
Inside Out 2
2024, Pixar/Walt Disney
After a few minor misfires, Pixar returns to form with a sequel that's less sequel and more just a continuation of the prior entry. They wisely did not bother to explain the convoluted process of memory formation/evaluation/storage and just continued on where they'd left off. This was almost a necessity to give them the elbow room to introduce several new characters. Yes, puberty is a messy affair, and the writers did not back away from that messiness. For myself, the only shortcoming was at times feeling as though I was once again on the couch getting my head renovated.
DKS 5/13/25