Great movie!

Rating: 10/10 (2 December 2015)

Bear with me. This is not your typical movie review. Oddly enough, my reasons for wanting to review this movie have very little to do with the animation, plot, story, characters, or entertainment value. For me, this movie was a way to give shape to how my emotions and personality function inside of me. Let me explain... I suffer from depression. It's a horrible disease which is really hard to understand sometimes. I'm also a 4th year medical student, so I understand quite a bit about it. The idea that my emotions, thoughts, perception, and image of the world could be completely distorted for no logical reason is something that was very hard for me to come to terms with. While watching this movie, I cried like a baby. But not because of what was happening to the characters. It was because I was finally able to "SEE" what was happening to me. My personality was well defined before I first became depressed. However, since then I've felt that I've lost a huge part of who I am, and coming to terms with the new, hopefully only temporarily BROKEN me, scares me more than anything. The ideas in this movie, such as core memories and islands of personality, are completely brilliant! I couldn't have imagined a better way to visually portray what I've battled with during my depression. Like Riley (the main character), an imbalance inside of me which was completely beyond my control and which occurred without my knowledge, led to some of MY islands of personality being lost or destroyed, probably forever. I only realized this for myself when I watched this film. For years I've been trying to somehow put a face to my demons, and Inside Out did this for me. Thanks to this movie, I've gained a sense of hope that I didn't have before. Like Riley, these thing that were happening inside of me were, and still are, were changing everything about me. Yes, Riley moving to a new city made her sad, but that was only the push that started the ball rolling. If her emotions had been in check, she would've been fine. while watching this movie, it is clear that Riley stops being who she really is. She completely changes. She is in now way in any control of her thoughts or emotions. This is exactly what depression does to you. It isn't something you can just snap out of. In the movie, Riley only gets better when her emotions are back in balance. In real life, this would most definitely require some professional help, and possibly medication, but even then, it's always good for the person going through this to somehow understand what's going on inside of them and realize that the solution might be beyond their control. Everyone will either love or hate this movie for their own reasons, but this is mine, and it couldn't be more personal. I love this movie for the ideas and the concepts that it's creators were able to come up with, whether intentional or not. If you've ever felt like your life, your emotions, your thoughts, or who you are have been changing for reasons beyond your control, then watch this movie. Maybe you're like me. Maybe this will help you understand. Maybe, you too can have hope.