Inside Out (2015 film)

Theatrical release poster

***Inside Out*** is a 2015 American computer-animated comedy-drama film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Pete Docter and produced by Jonas Rivera, it was co-written by Docter, Meg LeFauve, and Josh Cooley. The film stars the voices of Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Richard Kind, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Kaitlyn Dias, Diane Lane, and Kyle MacLachlan. It follows the inner workings of the mind of a young girl named Riley, who adapts to her family's relocation, as five personified emotions administer her thoughts and actions.

Docter conceived *Inside Out* in October 2009 after observing changes in his daughter's personality as she grew older. It was subsequently greenlit and its story developed by Docter and Ronnie del Carmen, who consulted psychologists and neuroscientists in an effort to portray the mind with greater accuracy. Development lasted for five and a half years on an approximately $175 million budget, the film suffering a delayed production schedule due to significant changes to its story and characters.

*Inside Out* debuted at the 68th Cannes Film Festival on May 18, 2015, and was released in the United States on June 19. It received acclaim for its animation, craftsmanship, screenplay, subject matter, plot, musical score, and vocal performances (particularly those of Poehler, Smith, Kind, and Black). The National Board of Review and the American Film Institute named *Inside Out* as one of the top ten films of 2015. It grossed $858.8 million worldwide, finishing its theatrical run as the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2015. The film was nominated for two awards at the 88th Academy Awards, winning Best Animated Feature, and received numerous other accolades. Some retrospective assessments have identified *Inside Out* as one of the best animated films ever made. A sequel, *Inside Out 2*, is scheduled for release on June 14, 2024.

## Plot

Within the mind of a young girl named Riley are the basic emotions that control her actions: Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger. Her experiences become memories, stored as colored orbs, which are sent into long-term memory each night. The aspects of five most important "core memories" within her personality incorporate the form of five floating islands. Joy acts as the leader, and she tries to limit Sadness's influence; Joy sees purpose in Fear, Disgust, and Anger, but thinks Sadness makes everything worse.

At the age of 11, Riley moves from Minnesota to San Francisco for her father's new job. At first, she has poor experiences: the new house is cramped and old; her father hardly has any time for her due to him needing to set up his new job; a local pizza parlor only serves pizza topped with broccoli, which she dislikes; and the moving van with their belongings was misdirected to Texas and will not arrive for weeks. On Riley's first day at her new school, Sadness retroactively turns joyous memories sad, which causes Riley to cry in front of her class and creates a sad core memory. Joy tries to dispose of it by using a vacuum tube, but accidentally knocks the other core memories loose during a struggle with Sadness, disabling the personality islands. Joy, Sadness, and the core memories are sucked out of Headquarters.

In Joy and Sadness's absence, Anger, Fear, and Disgust are forced to take control of Riley and try to make happy core memories, but the results are disastrous, distancing Riley from her parents, friends, and hobbies. Without the core memories, her personality islands gradually crumble, and fall into the "Memory Dump", where things fade to non-existence as they are forgotten. Finally, Anger resolves to run away to Minnesota, believing it will restore Riley's happiness.

While navigating the vast long-term memory area, Joy and Sadness encounter Bing Bong, Riley's imaginary friend, who suggests riding the "train of thought" back to Headquarters. After several adventures and mishaps, the trio eventually catch the train; however, it halts when Riley falls asleep, then derails entirely with the collapse of another island. Afraid that all the core memories will become sad, Joy abandons Sadness and tries to ride a "recall tube" back to the Headquarters. The ground below the tube collapses, breaking it and sending Joy and Bing Bong plunging into the Memory Dump.

After discovering a sad memory that turned happy when Riley's parents and friends comforted her, Joy understands Sadness's purpose of alerting others when Riley is emotionally overwhelmed and needs help. Joy and Bing Bong try to use Bing Bong's chant-fueled wagon rocket to escape the Memory Dump. They fail to fully ascend, due to their combined weight, until Bing Bong jumps out at the last moment and fades away.

Joy reunites with Sadness and they return to Headquarters, discovering that Anger's idea has disabled the console, putting Riley in depression as she boards a bus to Minnesota. To the surprise of the others, Joy hands control of the console to Sadness, who is able to reactivate it and prompt Riley to return to her parents. As Sadness re-installs the core memories, transforming them from happy to sad, Riley tearfully confesses to her parents that she misses her old life. Her parents comfort her and admit they also miss Minnesota. Joy and Sadness work the console together, creating a new core memory consisting of happiness and sadness; a new island forms, representing Riley's acceptance of her new life in San Francisco.

A year later, Riley, now at the age of 12, has adapted to her new home, made new friends, and returned to her old hobbies while acquiring a few new ones. Inside Headquarters, her emotions admire Riley's new personality islands, and are given a newly expanded console with room for them all to work together.

## Voice cast

* Amy Poehler as Joy
* Phyllis Smith as Sadness
* Richard Kind as Bing Bong
* Bill Hader as Fear
* Lewis Black as Anger
* Mindy Kaling as Disgust
* Kaitlyn Dias as Riley
* Diane Lane as Mom
* Kyle MacLachlan as Dad
* Paula Poundstone as Forgetter Paula
* Bobby Moynihan as Forgetter Bobby
* Paula Pell as the dream director and Mom's Anger
* Dave Goelz as Subconscious Guard Frank
* Frank Oz as Subconscious Guard Dave
* Josh Cooley as Jangles
* Flea as Mind Worker Cop Jake
* John Ratzenberger as Fritz
* Carlos Alazraqui as a helicopter pilot
* Peter Sagal as Clown's Joy
* Rashida Jones as Cool Girl's emotions