Inside Out 2 - Pixar's Fatal Flaw

🎬 In this FilmSpeak video essay, we discuss Inside Out 2 - Pixar's Fatal Flaw, why i wanted to love Inside Out 2, The HUGE Problem with Inside Out 2 and why Inside Out 2 is a disappointment.

In this Inside Out 2 movie review and Inside Out 2 analysis, I dive into the much-anticipated sequel, to Inside Out. Despite the positive reviews and impressive box office performance, I ultimately found the film to be a safe repeat of the original that didn't move me as much.

Maya Hawke's character, Anxiety, is an incredible new addition, and the depiction of a panic attack is genuinely effective and accurate. These high moments, however, don't account for the film as a whole. Ironically, Pixar's approach to Inside Out 2 seems to contradict the film's thesis. The studio has struggled to find itself amid franchise filmmaking pressures and the pandemic, which saw some of their most personal works, like Luca, Turning Red, and Soul, relegated to Disney+. This misstep damaged Pixar's prestige and reputation. Lightyear's lackluster performance and Elemental's slow success story further hurt Pixar's confidence.

Pixar, once known for boldness and creativity, now seems paralyzed by insecurity, losing sight of what made them a powerhouse. Inside Out 2, instead of evolving characters in new ways, feels like a safe bet designed to appeal to what the studio thinks audiences want. This move lacks the confidence and vision that once defined Pixar, amplifying Inside Out 2's shortcomings and exposing it as a product of anxiety.

It's natural for studios to experience growing pains, as seen with Disney Animation before the Disney Renaissance. While Pixar's reign seemed unshakable, they too have fallen prey to insecurities after misfires and poor decisions. Inside Out 2 reminds us not to let self-perception anxieties overtake our essence, a lesson Pixar itself seems to be forgetting.

Recent statements from Pete Docter about shifting Pixar's focus to mass appeal and sequels highlight a worrying trend. Audiences may not always know what they want until you show it to them, something Pixar once understood brilliantly. Let's hope Pixar rediscovers its unique magic before it's too late.

Edited by @CadesCinema

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🎞 About Inside Out 2 🎞

Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear and Disgust have been running a successful operation by all accounts. However, when Anxiety shows up, they aren't sure how to feel. Inside Out 2 is directed by Kelsey Mann and stars Amy Poehler, Phyllis Smith, Lewis Black, Diane Lane, and Kyle MacLachlan reprise their roles from the first film, with Maya Hawke, Kensington Tallman, Tony Hale, Liza Lapira, Ayo Edebiri, Lilimar, Grace Lu, Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green, Adèle Exarchopoulos, and Paul Walter Hauser joining the cast.
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[justanotherguy]

I’m sorry, but I swear every video criticizing Pixar now feels like it just boils down to, “Pixar was good, now they’re safe, Disney plus has damaged the brand” and it’s getting old. Especially considering that their brand had bounced back with elemental and inside out 2. Plus, being on Disney plus didn’t stop Soul from being universally loved, or Luca/turning red from being big hits that connected with many people. Ironic this video criticized Pixar for playing it safe, when this is the safest type of discussion you could create in a video about Pixar nowadays.

[WaterShipUp]

I agree that Anxiety is the best part of this movie and handled really well. As for the rest, I respectfully disagree. Though it's always interesting hearing a contrairian's take.

[geometrydashiuppiter]

They had no reason to treat anxiety and to represent a panic attack the way they did in the movie, yet they did. Maybe you can't understand how fucking deep that was unless you actually suffer from that in real life, but they manage to perfectly show through the images what usually can't be expressed into words. That is EXACTLY what a panic attack feels like, and also when all the emotions hug each other in order to calm it down, that's exaclty what happens when a panic attack ends (a hug usually actually helps). They showed that anxiety is an important part of us that needs to be there, but it needs to be sitting down sipping on tea and we can't let it be in control of our emotions.
This movie was fantastic. I'm not saying it's a masterpiece, but it was definitely not safe. They could've very well played it safe given the fact that this movie was a guaranteed succeess, but instead they really poured their hearts into this project.

[tomrogers]

"Devoid of all creative expression." Brother, there was literally a sequence where a "brain storm" was an actual storm, this is peak.

[jordansweet]

I always appreciate your voice but honestly, I loved the film. Anxiety made me feel a little too seen and that finale hit me like the best of Pixar's golden age. I respect that it justified its existence.

[gabrielfel]

Honestly, I just loved the film, I thought it was very mature not to treat anxiety as a "villain", but rather as someone who only tries and fails, The only thing that bothers me is this new formula for making films with the "Tik Tok" aesthetic, that is, every 5 minutes the scene changes, and there are jokes all the time, and there are no moments of contemplation, or if there are, they are few moments, apart from the film having doubts in terms of plots, something I saw a lot in Nimona, but ok, right, it's not like it spoils the film, it just bothers

[shitpostborgar]

Inside out 2 explores incredibly engaging and imaginative concepts; its biggest flaw, besides following closely the overall narrative structure of the first, is that it feels rushed. If the movie had been longer, if Riley’s puberty had been explored before going to the camp instead of cramping up into one scene where she screams to her mom, the movie would be perfect

[natebrown]

While I appreciate the intelligent and well thought out criticism, I disagree wholeheartedly. This movie wrecked me and my wife and my kids loved it. As someone who never dealt with Anxiety but suddenly the last few years it seems to always be there. I am glad audiences and the box office seem to have a way better opinion of this excellent and emotional film.

[ShellsGhost]

The safe film would've been 90 mins of the short where she goes on a date with a boy. They did a lot with this film that was surprisingly refreshing. The contrast of her mom's emotions having sadness as the lead was nice. Or that the adults tended to have the same personality for all their emotions.

[thalamusstudios]

Honestly this film gives a voice for those who suffer from anxiety and other disorders that involve anxiety being a key feature. As someone who suffers from C-PTSD this was a conversation started towards those who denied or never truly understood what I was enduring. Instead of criticizing maybe start seeing all that is translated what words could never accomplish

[nykoman]

I saw a lot of comments saying the film is really good and although I respect those opinions. I just didn’t really like inside out 2, it felt like a copy of the first film for me. 🤷

[daydreaminavenue]

I disagree with your take on this film, but I do respect your opinion. "Inside Out 2" perfectly represents how anxiety I have never related to the film as much as "Inside Out 2". Growing up was scary, and I was incredibly anxious about my future. The final scene was perfect.

[verynsawyer]

Okay, something I think people are completely forgetting is that this film is NOT about mental illness. People hear "anxiety" and they thing generalized anxiety disorder, but that's not what the film is about AT ALL. People keep saying it's not actually safe because it touches on all these subjects that are considered taboo in mainstream media, but it really doesn't. It doesn't ever even say the words panic attack. This movie is not about GAD or panic disorder any mental illness, it is about the surfacing of the emotion even the most mentally healthy people experience. It's a very relatable movie, but it's getting people to defend it as revolutionary without actually having to break any rules.
Edit: this isn't to discount anyone with or without mental illness who's been emotionally impacted by this movie. Though I felt it had more potential, it still hit hard enough that I cried.

[georgiap.]

The only thing I completely agree with in this video, is the fact that I felt too like they didn't know what to do with the first set of emotions💀like their journey to consciousness and all was kinda unneccessary and I felt like it was a filler for the rest of the film. I know they're suppressed emotions and all but they kinda didn't have any agency in Riley's mind while that is not the case in adolescence. I feel like they could have handled this better, but other than that, it still was a very accurate depiction of the emotional complexities of puberty, especially anxiety's role who is the one who takes control in opposition to joy, which after all, are the main reasons we keep going as they keep us motivated for different reasons.

[moonamoonz]

Inside out 2 is pretty much a copy and paste of the first one, anxiety acts the same way joy does, thinking she is the most important emotion and suppressing another ones. I expected the movie to introduce new ideas, what isn't really done. Also, at times it feels like there is too much going on, but nothing going on at the same time. I will give some credit because it really is refreshing having a movie in 2024 that is not full of agendas and certain themes. Overall the movie isn't bad, is just ok.

[GregoryBronstein]

The conflict would have been better as an internal conflict between the original emotions.

[M.W.]

We need more movies with Leslie Nope as voide actor

[smaugsauron]

Now i know i might sound crazy but i never considered inside out to be one of my favourite Pixar movies. The reason being that i just don't think that the concept of characters that represent an emotion just didn't speak to me that well but that's not to say i hate the movie no, i think it's a solid 8/10, but my actual favorite Pixar movie is CARS from 2006. It might be because i watched that movie many times as i was younger but the true reason is that the message of that movie i just find more relatable than just emotions that are characters. The message of CARS is Simple:slow down and enjoy the simple things in life. That to me is a lot more powerful and relatable than insode out. Now I haven't seen inside out 2 but i honestly knew that the movie would be a huge success and that it would be loved. But the point I'm trying to make is that i just am not as found for inside out as so many other people are. Great cideo by the way griffin keep up the great content ❤.

[verynsawyer]

I saw this movie in theaters with a bunch of my family (like 8 of us), and I was honestly shocked at their reactions because almost all of them said they liked it more than the first one. Judging by the few comments I've read on this video, it seems most people agree that this movie was as impactful or even more impactful than the first one. As someone who deals with extreme anxiety that seems to only be getting worse, though I related to the movie and saw what it was going for, it still didn't hit as hard as the first one and did seem to either repeat old story beats or add new things that kind of contradicted the first film (small things like how memories now can either form a belief or go to long term, not both). Don't get me wrong, I cried, it was a great movie and I loved it, I just didn't love it as much as the first and was surprised that wasn't the general consensus since I tend to be the one giving movies the benefit of the doubt. There were certain things I thought were brilliant, like anxiety taking over imagination land, but ultimately I felt like it had a lot of unexplored potential. Plus it kinda chalked up panic attacks as something that has an easy solution and likely won't happen again, which of course neither of those things are true in reality.

Idk, maybe I'm missing something everyone else sees, but as someone who theoretically should find this movie extra relatable, I was surprised it didn't quite hit the mark for me.
Again, that's only because my expectations were set exceedingly high by the first movie. I still love this film and will rewatch it many times and cry every time I'm sure.

[MattDraper]

Really just a missed opportunity to call the movie Outside In and make it a sorta Innerspace type story