By Ryan Simmons (Twitter: RyanSimmonsVO)

Review: Latest Pixar sequel Incredible, or not so much?

Jun 15, 2018 | 10:53 AM

Pixar is arguably the number one studio these days for cartoon movies. I’m sure there are some Disney purists who would argue, or even some weird Shrek fans who might fight real hard for Dreamworks, but I think most people would tell you Pixar has the cartoon movie market cornered.

Where I think most people would admit Pixar stumbles a bit, though, is with sequels. To my mind they’ve only really knocked a sequel out of the park one time with Toy Story 3. Toy Story 2, Monster’s University, Finding Dory… in the pantheon of Pixar sequels many of them only ever reach the heights of “ok”.

So while many Pixar movies are an obvious slam dunk for fun family time that the adults can enjoy too, the sequels aren’t such a sure thing in my mind. That’s what had me a bit worried heading into Incredibles 2. Would I be thrilled to see my favourite super hero family on screen together after 14 years or would this be a “careful what you wish for” situation?

I’m happy to report that within even the first twenty minutes of this movie, my concerns were proven to be totally unfounded. Incredibles 2 is easily as fun as the first movie. The action is great, the family is super charming together, the mix of family life and super hero life is still as interesting as ever, and the jokes are fantastic, landing at a high rate with all the kids and adults in the theatre with me.

Where Incredibles 2 falters a bit, and falls short of the original, is with the bad guy. In the first movie Syndrome was a great character. His powers were cool, his back story added a personal element and Jason Lee’s performance is one I still remember to this day. In comparison, the bad guy in this one is serviceable but doesn’t really enhance the story too much.

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Luckily, Incredibles 2, like the first, is a lot more about how the Parr family adapts to their super lives and that story element still pays wonderfully fun dividends the second time around. Little baby JackJack even stole the show in this one a bit, leading to some scenes that are, dare I say it, even funnier than anything in the first movie.

Incredibles 2 is not as good as the first, I can say that with some confidence, but I would say it’s a much closer race than I ever thought it would be, especially given the fact that I consider the first a perfect movie. I was worried I’d walk away from this sequel wishing they left well enough alone, but here I am the next day, hoping they make an Incredibles 3.