The cast of Disney/Pixar’s Inside Out may symbolize specific emotions, but they’re not entirely defined by them. They collectively work as a five person team overseeing the thoughts of Riley Anderson (Kaitlyn Dias), a chipper 11 year old girl from Minnesota who’s obsessed with hockey and loves to goof around with her friends and family. When Riley’s father finds a new job in San Francisco, her parents (Kyle MacLachlan, Diane Lane) pack up and move to the Fog City, the beginning of what turns out to be a major crisis for Riley’s mental quintet.
Team leader Joy (Amy Poehler) is essentially the captain, representing Riley’s happiness, sense of humor and hope. She’s rounded out by the diminutive but fierce Anger (Lewis Black, in what is perhaps his ideal role), the sassy Disgust (Mindy Kaling), the self doubting but kind hearted Sadness (Phyllis Smith), and the hyperactive and overcautious Fear (Bill Hader). As much as she means well, her powers only go so far, and she eventually finds herself on a journey of self discovery alongside her girl.
The gang has their hands full dealing not only with new challenges due to the move- among other things, missing old friends at a new school and a pizza place that specializes in broccoli toppings, Riley’s least favorite- but also her inevitable maturation. Her memories are represented by small opaque orbs colored to their corresponding moods, the most vital being her “core memories stored in the middle of her emotional control center.
A series of embarrassing events cause various aspects of Riley’s personality, represented by various islands, to suddenly corrode and collapse, driving her into a depression, and Joy and Sadness eventually get trapped in her mental labyrinth. The two attempt to make their way back to headquarters, travelling through a vast community of brain cells working in colorful areas symbolizing personality aspects such as her imagination, good judgment, and in a hilarious scene her nightly dreams which operate like a movie studio.
Through some great direction and co-writing from Pete Docter (Up, Monsters Inc.), Inside Out is remarkably meticulous and thoughtful, all without sacrificing its sense of fun. None of the sentiments feel shoehorned or maudlin, and compared to a lot of animated films that use fantastic and outrageous premises, I think the fairly down-to-earth moving setup helps a lot in that regard. Luckily for all her troubles, Riley is a charming and sympathetic kid, a testament to how much her emotions love her and are willing to fight for her.
For a pre-teen girl still trying to find her place in the world, what would be simply a necessary burden to an adult such as a job-related relocation can be a devastating and profound change. And the whimsical universe Pixar has created here provides the bulk of the film’s action and humor through her crisis, as well as a portion of the drama.
As toy ready as the cast is aesthetically, their personalities are just as memorable thanks to some top notch voice acting. Black, Kaling and Hader are all hilarious as their respective characters trying to steer the ship without Sadness and Joy, with Fear appropriately panicking, Disgust suitably irritated and Anger pushing for drastic action- including but not limited to some profanity he’s been holding onto (obviously nothing too harsh, since this is a PG affair).
Amy Poehler’s Joy is pretty much the film’s viewpoint character, with a performance that balances boundless optimism with emotional (no pun intended) maturity. She’s clearly out of her element dealing with the crisis, but she always exudes a sense of warmth and understanding that makes her easy to like- there are points in which you’ll want to reach into the screen and hug her. Smith’s Sadness is both sweet and comically downbeat, providing a great foil to Joy as they search for the solution to Riley’s funk, alongside her previously forgotten imaginary friend Bing Bong (a very endearing Richard Kind).
I don’t consider it overhype to declare Inside Out one of Pixar’s best movies in recent years alongside so many other critics. People might rag on the Cars franchise and their increased emphasis on sequels, but this film proves they’ve still got plenty of magic left in their tank. It’s frantically funny, cleverly designed and animated, cerebral and touching to boot, so I definitely wouldn’t mind seeing another film or two starring Riley and her personality team.