After 14 years of accumulating the right necessities, director Brad Bird finally gives ’90s babies what they’ve been dying for — “Incredibles 2.” Bird finds the perfect blend of new and old cast members, utilizes colorful and beautiful stylized animation, brings consistent humor and incorporates an excellent score composed by Michael Giacchino, the musical talent behind the original film.
Taking place directly after the events of the first film, Elastigirl, voiced by Holly Hunter, is recruited to help advocate for the return of superheroes decades after they were declared illegal. While she goes off to work at her new job, Mr. Incredible, voiced by Craig T. Nelson, watches over their three children back home. However, when the imminent arrival of a supervillain, dubbed the Screenslaver, threatens to put Elastigirl’s mission in jeopardy, it is up to the Incredibles family, Frozone – voiced by Samuel L. Jackson – and a new breed of superheroes to both save the day and bring outlawed heroism out of the shadows.
For starters, “Incredibles 2” has more moments of hilarity than its predecessor. There is a litany of scenes involving how the characters use their powers and Mr. Incredible’s attempts to tackle domestic parenthood.
Although she wasn’t an afterthought in the original, it was nice to see Elastigirl be given a more prominent role that puts female superheroes in the forefront of the story. Perhaps it will convince studio executives, in or outside of Disney, to give women a better share in the plots for future projects of this nature.
“Incredibles 2” also exhibited flawless animation and special effects throughout. The work put in by supervising animator Dave Mullins and effects supervisor Bill Watral worked out fantastically. The animations and special effects were prominent during the fight scenes, different gadgetry, highlighting of costume designs and the grandiose architecture on display.
The original cast mixed well with newcomers Catherine Keener, Sophia Bush and Bob Odenkirk. Most of them had so much enthusiasm when voicing their roles. They all seem to really connect to their characters.
Like regular superhero films, “Incredibles 2” balances moments of powerful action and drama between teammates. “Incredibles 2” also understands the concept of doing the right thing and trying to come together when all hope seems lost. Some action scenes would not have had an impact without Giacchino’s upbeat work. His dynamic, jazzy score accentuates when the Incredibles came to save the town and also sounds appropriately eerie and ominous when dealing with the antagonists.
Now that the prior cliffhanger has been resolved, “Incredibles 2” soothed my appetite to see the super family progress. It took a lot of work to bring the sequel to theaters, including recasting government agent Rick Dicker, who was originally voiced by Bud Luckey who died in 2018. Disney and Pixar have surely outdone themselves. If anyone is looking for an excellent superhero film from an animated perspective, go see “Incredibles 2.”
