Incredibles 2

It’s been an incredibly long wait, but the final product is incredibly worth it!

Released fourteen years after the original, but taking place immediately afterwards story-wise, Incredibles 2 sees our close-nit superhero family, the Parrs, take on new threats and new evils as the idea of re-legalizing “Supers” after decades of them being outlawed becomes a hot button topic across the globe. Enter Winston Deavor (Bob Odenkirk), owner of a large telecommunications company called DEVTECH, who wants nothing more than to see Supers return to the glory and fame of yesteryear by become the shining beacon of hope they once were. By concocting a publicity stunt aimed at getting the public to embrace Supers again, Deavor recruits Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson), Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) and Frozone (Samuel L. Jackson), to help spread his hopeful agenda around the world with one slight catch: Elastigirl, not Mr. Incredible will be the face of the operation, a completely different take on what the dynamic was back in the day, a dynamic that Mr. Incredible has a hard time wrapping his head around. Now, with Elastigirl front and center and Mr. Incredible taking on familial duties, daughter Violet (Sarah Vowell), and sons Dash (Huck Milner), and Jack-Jack (Eli Fucile), are stuck at home waiting to see how it all pans out, all the while dealing with Jack-Jack’s ever growing repertoire of superpowers. But when a new villain by the name of Screenslayer (Bill Wise) starts hypnotizing citizens and making them carry out his nefarious goals, it’s up to Elastigirl to save the day, make a good name for Supers everywhere, and catch the bad guy before he can bring the city to its knees.

Much like the long, decade-plus wait in between Finding Nemo and Finding Dory, Incredibles 2, directed by Pixar alum Brad Bird, hits the screen running as if no time has passed at all. This time around, the through line of this film brilliantly compliments and expands on the original’s concept of a “normal” family finally allowing themselves to embrace the fact that they are, against all legal and moral dilemmas, far from normal. Spearheaded by the patriarch of the family, Mr. Incredible, the original found gold in mixing the monotonous suburban lives of the Parrs with their superhero shenanigans near perfectly, and even though the film itself was all about family and what it takes to hold one together, it was more often than not a story about Mr. Incredible and his rise back to the pinnacle of his superhero-ing youth. Flash-forward to the sequel and now it’s Elastigirl’s, not Mr. Incredible’s time to shine, and boy, does she shine.

A film like Incredibles 2 couldn’t have come at a better time: we’re in the middle of the biggest push of superhero films in the history of the industry, and we’re (finally) giving females credit where credit is due both in front of and behind the lens. Allowing this sequel to challenge the tropes of what it means to be a superhero, a family (wo)man, and an individual in your own right is brilliant and inspired if only because I can count on one hand the amount of female-led superhero films in the past three decades; even less if we’re counting those that are worth watching. Having Elastigirl and Mr. Incredible essentially swap places from their status quo in the original film opens up a whole new bag of ideas that Pixar, as usual, is able to flesh out and do justice to without breaking a sweat.

Holly Hunter and director Brad Bird bring Elastigirl to the forefront of the film, riffing on parallels scenes, plot beats and actions set pieces from the original, while still being able to give our hero her own sense of accomplishment and personal wants and needs throughout the story, much like how Mr. Incredible did in the first film. On the flip-side, seeing Mr. Incredible step out of the lime light and into the seemingly more demanding Dad role is a great look at why being the strongest Super in the world means little when you can’t figure out why your daughter refuses to speak to you, why these damn schools “changed” math, and why your infant can shoot laser from his eyes and disappear into an alternate dimension at will. Being able to see both sides of our main characters’ plight both out on the streets and inside of their home does wonders to ground and humanize these characters, allowing the character building from the first film to exponentially grow and expand in ways only a real family can.

Jack-Jack steals the show as a baby on the loose with powers even Mr. Incredible can’t handle, and whether it be an absolutely hilarious scuffle with a raccoon, or a new wrinkle in his power-set that takes even Frozone off-guard, every scene he’s in is a joy to watch visually and being able to experience each new power along with the rest of the Parrs is just plain fun. Mix in some amazing and exciting set pieces dealing with Elastigirl’s new role in the family as she tracks down Screenslayer, add a bit of family drama to the proceedings, and you have a great sequel that is able to match the excitement and fun of the original in nearly every way.

All that being said, the only thing that really puts a damper on the film is its villain. In all honesty, I could have done without one at all merely based on the fact that it felt tacked on just for the sake of having a bad guy in the script to begin with. Not only was the reveal of who it was under the mask completely obvious and unsurprising, but the hypnotizing angle loses steam towards the third act when the script falls into a just good, not great, rut. The clichés of the superhero genre rear their ugly heads in regards to this villain and their master plan, so it was a bit of a bummer to see even the slightest dip in quality whenever the focus of the film shifted to the whole “catch the baddie” scenario instead of sticking with the enjoyable family and superhero drama most of the film is made out to be.

By the time I walked out of the theater, I had realized two things about this film: taking your sweet ass time to build and create something new and old at the same time, while being able to expand over the original film in meaningful and interesting ways was totally worth the wait, and two, female roles in the superhero realm need to keep this upward trend because for me, that new perspective on family relationships and what it means to be a female in a predominantly male “business” is really fun to watch and inspiring to say the least. Any way you cut it, Incredibles 2 is a worthy successor to The Incredibles legacy, and stands tall as yet another notch in Pixar’s brilliant filmmaking resume. Now can I get a time jump for the next installment so I can see grown-up Jack-Jack wreck shit as the GOAT superhero? Yes, please!