Oh what sweet relief it is to know that the wait for Incredibles 2 was worth it! The movie that fans have been clamoring for in the midst of Pixar making multiple Cars films and the final Toy Story film. But it was worth the wait saints as writer/director Brad Bird delivers all the thrills and chills of the original picture, while still maintaining the heart that captured us the first go round.
One of the most brilliant things this movie does choose to set its narrative immediately following the end of the last film. Our family has now decided to fight crime together, taking on The Underminer, with disastrous results. They are rightly dragged for it and public sentiment is not on the side of the heroes. However, the superheroes have big fans in the owners of DevTech who want to show the superheroes as necessary to the fabric of society. To do so, they enlist ElastiGirl, not Mr. Incredible to head up this fight. Hilariously, Mr. Incredible is now forced to take care of his family which includes Violet’s relationship issues, Dash’s homework, and Jack Jack’s emerging powers. However, when the Screenslaver pops up and starts making a mess of things, the whole family must come together to fight.
Brad Bird returning to animation was always going to be an event and he does right by the Incredibles. I was thrilled watching him put together those action sequences and watch how he gets new and interesting performances out of his voice actors. His script is very sharp and I really loved how he dealt with Violet’s journey in this film. The only downside to this movie is that it is extremely predictable in it’s second half. I knew exactly where the movie would go and while that’s not a bad thing, I do think we could have been afforded some more surprises. I was carried through that issue though by what is one of Michael Giacchino’s finest hours as a composer. His score for Incredibles 2 is amazing, full of the Mission: Impossible and James Bond hewing themes. I loved every note that he composed and helped make Incredibles 2 an enjoyable time at the theater.