Pixar Rises

Rating: 10/10 (26 November 2015)

Pixar is back from the dead, baby. Rising up like a Phoenix from the ashes, the fallen studio once more takes their place among the gods of the movie-making business.
Okay, so Pixar didn't really leave; and contrary to popular belief, they didn't even stop being good. I did not love Monsters U and Brave, but I liked them alright. The only terrible thing they've done is Cars 2, and I am more than willing to forgive that. But Inside Out brings back the sort of emotional poignancy that we've come to not only expect, but depend on from The House That Steve Jobs Built.
The basic premise is witty: inside the head of an 11-year-old girl named Riley, there are five emotions, lead by Joy, that control her thoughts and actions. While it may not be entirely original, it takes the concept to places it hasn't gone before, which is what really counts. I love how they manage to make every emotion sound like they are coming from the perspective of this girl even as they're voiced by some of the biggest comedy stars in the world. The illusion is never broken; everything is captivating and aware. If it were up to me, I'd give this the Best Original Screenplay Award at the Oscars, but alas, it is not.
Now I could talk about many things, including the multi-faceted characters, the great-even-for-Pixar animation, that killer main theme, the stirring somberness of the movie, and so much else. But everyone has discussed all that and much more, as all those articles titled something along the lines of 'What Inside Out Gets Right and Wrong About the Human Head' by 'Mr. Fancy Neurologist' can attest to. So I'll skip by all that, at least for now. Everyone knows this is one of the greatest movies of the year. Allow me to talk about my personal experience.
The first time I watched this film, I only got about two-thirds of the way through (to about the part where Riley tries out for her new junior hockey team) before I couldn't watch anymore. I'd rather not disclose why, at least not here; but I had to have the partly finished version of this film in my head for the better part of a month. I only watched it all the way through today, and let me tell you... Wow, it is so much better than I thought. Not that I didn't like it before; the artistry and quick writing turned me on like a light bulb, and I could see why this was Pixar at its best. But all the themes and the storyline didn't quite come together until that final third. If you've watched this movie, you'll now something of what I speak.
Perhaps that's just the mark of a well-written movie; if you miss a major chunk, you're left with only part of a bridge. Movies that I've watched and liked because of one factor or another, but operated on lousy scripts, did not make me feel like I lost anything if I didn't see the last third. I think this is especially true for children's movies, which can easily fall into clichés if not done right. No, there's nothing inherently wrong with using clichés, but they don't add anything to the story, don't demand that you stay and watch.
Anyway, there is a real sense of subtlety and truth that this film carries about it. Perhaps it's the equivalent to that person who just draws all the attention by just standing there, but you don't know why until you are looking for it and break it down. The leads here are literally emotions, yet they're more three-dimensional than ninety-percent of anything out there.
20 years ago, Pixar released Toy Story. In a few more years, the people who watched that film as a kid will watch films like this with their kid. And hopefully, the people who watched this as a kid with those people will watch other Pixar films another 20 years in the future. Long live animation.
(P.S. I love how they manage to build a mindscape that both made sense and worked as a beautiful adventure world.)