Inside Out

Released:  June 19^th, 2015

Rated:  PG

Distributor:  Walt Disney Studios

Starring:  Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Bill Hader, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling

Directed by:  Pete Docter, Ronaldo Del Carmen

Written by:  Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley, Pete Docter

Personal Bias Alert:  Not a Pixar devotee, loves Amy Poehler

7.8 of 10

            I believe it was the philosopher Daniel Dennett who said that most people imagine a little man sitting at a desk somewhere between their eyes and their brain who filters their experiences and thoughts.  The parallels between this idea and the setup in Inside Out, which posits that there’s a group of emotions sitting at a control table somewhere between your eyes and your brain who filter your experiences and thoughts, is remarkable.  While Dennett used the setup to explore an entirely different idea, the striking similarity made it difficult for me to take Inside Out as such a novel idea.  Not that novelty is a necessity, but it does add an extra bit of zest to a film, something that might have bumped Inside Out into the upper echelon of family films.  Without that extra pop, it’s relegated to that group of perfectly adequate, well-made attempts that just missed the mark of true greatness.

            Inside Out is the latest from Disney/Pixar, whose recent dip in quality have allowed their competitors to get within reach of their big man on campus status.  Struggling is a relative term, of course, but their recent spate of sequels/prequels (with many more on the way) have fans wondering if they’re struggling to come up with original ideas now that they’ve worked through their napkin movies (if you’re unfamiliar with that tale, read http://www.businessinsider.com/pixar-movies-thanks-to-napkin-sketches-at-lunch-meeting-2014-4).  Still, Pixar continues to be the most narratively ambitious of the major animation studios, here taking on the inner tumult of a preteen, Riley (Kaitlyn Dias), who’s forced to move from Minnesota to San Francisco with her strained family.  While Riley is the focal point of the story, it’s the emotions inside her that are the real main characters.  Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), and Disgust (Mindy Kaling) are all personified as real creatures in her head, and it’s the interactions between these five that control what Riley does.  Hence, we learn about Riley from the inside out (get it?).

            This setup allowed for the Pixar team to invent a visual representation of a person’s mind, which is exactly the sort of task where they separate themselves from the animation pack.  The detailed thought that went into the world building is astounding, as always, giving the impression of a labyrinthine space that’s constantly shifting, held together by only the most tenuous bands.  If ever a more accurate representation of a growing mind existed, then I’m not aware of it.

            The same level of thought went into the character designs of the five emotions, whose outlines and colorations naturally evoke their designated state.  Fear is a lanky, squirrely fellow who seems constantly primed to curl up into a ball on the ground.  Disgust is green with a perpetually disaffected look, and Anger is like a fire red block.  Joy and Sadness, who form the film’s main duo, have the same color hair for a nice visual match, but joy is lighter and literally glows while Sadness is stocky and bundled up.  There’s never any danger of confusing the characters (you could tell them apart by their outlines alone), and it’s a joy (pardon the pun) to watch the detailed differences between the five emotions.

            Where Pixar dropped the ball a bit was in matching this visual execution to an equally inventive plot.  The setup, as previously discussed, isn’t an original as it might seem, and the plot never quite gains a sturdy foothold.  The beginning narration sputters through thick exposition, and the rest of the film never finds a balance between Riley’s outer life and the one inside her head.  The inner life plot feels very episodic and overly long, while Riley’s outer life doesn’t actually follow the rules that the film established for itself.  This creates an emotional rift between Riley and her, well, emotions, so that while each storyline does contains some potentially powerful moments, they don’t work in concert with each other.

            The ambition of this story is admirable, but it also raises the bar for what the film must achieve to be considered truly great.  So while Inside Out is a funny, heartfelt film, its failure to fully capitalize on its premise makes it feel like a bit of a missed shot.  It’s just barely off the mark, but we’ve all seen Pixar hit the bull’s-eye many times, which makes it a bit more disappointing when they don’t.

Other Notes:

Ø  I’ve seen this in 2D and 3D, and the 3D feels like an unnecessary add-on.  Totally not worth it.

Ø  This is some all-around excellent voice casting.

Ø  I never even came close to crying at this one, proving yet again that there’s a black void where my heart should be.