Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust are all common emotions that humans face. This was well represented in 2015 by Pixar’s Inside Out movie. With the film reaching huge levels of success, Inside Out 2 was released 9 years later, on June 14, 2024, to dig deeper into the changes in our emotions as we grow up.
The sequel surrounds Riley’s growth into a teenager, introducing the emotions Anxiety, Embarrassment, Envy, and Ennui. The plot follows the conflict between Riley’s original and new emotions, as both fight to stay in or take control over Riley. At first glance, this PG-rated film seems like a perfectly funny, yet dramatic, movie for young children. However, due to the complexity and emotional maturity of the themes, I believe the target audience is better suited to young adults.
Despite the silly, animated portrayal of the characters, the movie’s exhibition of the feeling of growing up is all too serious and realistic. Joy’s statement “Maybe this is what happens when you grow up. You feel less joy,” encapsulates the increasing difficulties that can come as we move through life. Specifically, Anxiety’s character, demonstrated as bossy and controlling, provides an almost scarily accurate portrayal of the actual emotion. The way she instills “I’m not good enough,” into Riley’s belief system, and pushes out all of the other emotions in an attempt to “fix” Riley, establishes a sense of relatability in every teenage viewer. For me, the most climactic scene of the movie was Riley’s overwhelming stress and pressure resulting in an anxiety attack. Depicted by Anxiety freezing up and becoming completely out of control, the feelings of this experience were flawlessly captured.
Overall, I think this movie surprised us all. What we thought was going to be yet another simple and amusing children’s movie was instead an emotional rollercoaster with its tear-jerking lines and heavy-hitting concepts. Despite the original film being lighthearted and good for all ages, Inside Out 2 was very well-made exclusively for an older audience.
