Great fun, often creative, but also a bit plastic and dumbed down at times

Rating: 7/10 (6 August 2015)

Inside Out (2015)
Totally fun, with some semi-serious analysis of how our brains work for a kid to absorb. And heck, maybe some adults, too. The story of a girl adjusting to moving to a new city and a new life is layered with a fanciful view of psychology. It's good stuff.
I didn't find it as mind-blowing (so to speak) or inventive as many seem to, having read a few reviews out there. The clichés here are expected and almost necessary (the types of people playing aspects of personality, for example). So that's fine. But the larger story of adjustment is painted in very ordinary ways, hitting the usual trigger points without much creativity. I'm not talking the in-the-brain stuff, which is totally great in a Bugs Bunny kinds of great crazy way, but the outside story.
I also don't really like this kind of animation—it's not as cartoony as, say, two of my favorites, "Monsters Inc." and "The Incredibles," both by Pixar. And it's not over-realistic as some animated/CGI inventions are (from "Avatar" to "Polar Express"). So the characters (the daughter and her parents, mainly, but everyone, top to bottom) are kind of plasticky fake/real. The personalities also have that Disney kind of white-washed blandness that seems quaint on the surface but is empty and predictable and a bit off-putting at the same time.
I enjoyed this movie and it would be hard not to. And maybe this kind of children's film, or young adult film, should be aove serious criticism. But if it does warrant critique, and comparison to other animated features, it falls short. That's fair enough.
Finally, it does have some totally brilliant moments, especially when it shows the insides of other people's (and animal's) brains. Notice how the audience really (and finally) comes awake and laughs with a roar at this! Now that's great filmmaking. Too bad it's just a few minutes of the total.