Review: With ‘Inside Out,’ Pixar overcomes 'sequelitis’ to return to tear-jerker form

“Welcome back, Pixar. You were sorely missed. Over the course of 15 years and nearly a dozen films, the animation studio had put together one of the most remarkable runs of sustained excellence in cinematic history, culminating with the trifecta of ‘Wall-E,’ ‘Up’ and ‘Toy Story 3.’ But nothing lasts forever. A few members of the studio’s central brain trust branched out into live-action, head honcho John Lasseter added Walt Disney Animation Studios to his list of responsibilities, and Pixar came down with an acute case of sequelitis. But right now, none of that matters. Because writer-director Pete Docter — the man responsible for ‘Monsters, Inc.,’ arguably Pixar’s most underrated picture, as well as ‘Up,’ its best overall — has now given us ‘Inside Out,’” writes the Atlantic’s Christopher Orr.

See it now. Savor the moment. And do your best to forget that ‘Cars 3,’ ‘Toy Story 4,’ ‘The Incredibles 2,’ and ‘Finding Dory’ are all rumbling down the pipeline behind it.

Christopher Orr

“At once achingly heartfelt and magnificently high-concept, the film tells the story of a girl named Riley and the five emotions that together make up her psyche: Joy, Sadness, Fear, Disgust, and Anger. ‘Inside Out’ is a vibrant, witty film, full of dazzling visuals and, at a zippy 94 minutes, wise enough not to let its intricate workings overwhelm its storytelling. And while the lessons it offers may be straightforward, they’re eminently useful ones, for kids and parents alike. If this sounds like a lot of gloopy therapeutic uplift — well, it is, except for the gloopy part. The real journey, of course, is not from point A to point B, but toward an acceptance of the full breadth of our emotional lives,” Orr writes.

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