Quite Possibly the Best Film I've Seen in Awhile

Rating: 10/10 (16 April 2005)

I liked Shrek. But I had a problem with Shrek 2. It was a funny movie, but I couldn't help thinking if I would find it funny 20 years from now when all the recent pop-culture jokes referred to trends and events long forgotten by the public at large.
There will be no such problem with the Incredibles. 20 years from now, this film will still hold water. Brad Bird assured that by setting the story in a decidedly time-neutral setting (presumably in the '50s or '60s, though it doesn't feel like we're in either decade) and using a classic John Barry-esquire soundtrack (no modern pop tunes here -- completely analog and brass-heavy).
Yes, the film does pull from pop-culture, but only from time tested, canonized classics. I was born in the late 1970's but was still able to pick out the homages to the Sean Connery-era Bond films (most notably, "You Only Live Twice") and the golden age of superheroes.
In the commentary, the director speaks of melding the fantastic with the mundane. That's where the film most brilliantly shines. We know Superman's super, but what happens when he has a bad day at work and slams his car door? We've seen a bit of this in the Spiderman franchise, and I have no doubt that's what largely accounts for Spiderman's success on the big screen.
Most importantly, though, this is a family film for the ENTIRE family. While your kids will be astounded by Dash's speed, Violet's forcefields, Helen's shape-shifting, and Bob's super-strength, adults will identify with Bob go through a mid-life crisis while his employer forces him into a cubicle barely larger than he and his job sucks nearly every ounce of color from his life. Moms will understand the pressures of trying to raise two contentious children while dealing with the biggest kid of them all -- Dad. When not fighting crime, this family reminds me a bit too much of my own. For all of its attempts to be fantastic, the film is uncannily true to life.
Even though the movie runs 113 minutes, I still found myself wanting more at the end. Half the fun of this movie is watching the family interact. At the heart of the movie are the believable characterizations, excellent voice acting (You'll quickly forget that you're listening to Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter), and warm intrafamily drama. On more than one occasion, I saw my dad coming home after a hard day at the office, and my mom at home, trying to keep me and my sisters from killing each other.
I have heard balking that this movie was a departure from ordinary Pixar films. I have to agree, but I'm not balking. Though I enjoyed Toy Story, A Bug's Life, and Finding Nemo, I thought they pandered to the kiddies too much. By contrast, the Incredibles doesn't compromise. Brad Bird is an especially gifted animation director. It was of little surprise to me to find out that he was the genius behind Amazing Stories' Family Dog. When I found out he directed a few episodes of the Simpsons, it made too much sense.
The movie was apparently intended as a two-dimensional animated release, but I'm glad they decided to render it in three dimensions -- both the film and the characters.