Why did I wait this long to see a well-received sequel I'd anticipated for nine years? Well, I've gotten squeamish about watching family fare in theaters, where kids might get noisy. Plus, my folks almost never join me at movie theaters anymore and are likely to be tired of Disney from looking after their grandkids. I opted for a Disney+ showing alone.
Shortly after Riley (Kensington Tallman) turns 13, a crew revamps the control center of her mind such that Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale, not Bill Hader), and Disgust (Liza Lapira, not Mindy Kaling) find the panel oversensitive to their touch. More importantly, a host of new emotions shows up: manic Anxiety (Maya Hawke), adorably tiny Envy (Ayo Edebiri), French-accented Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), near-mute galoot Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), and elderly Nostalgia (June Squibb). Anxiety has a big plan to change Riley's behavior and sense of self, and when the first five emotions aren't on board, she literally bottles them up and banishes them to the vault of secrets. They spend most of the movie trying to get back before Riley's life is in shambles.
The "external" plot is a little less simple than before. Riley and her besties, Grace (Grace Lu) and Bree (Sumayyah Nuriddin-Green), play hockey well enough to win the attention of Coach Roberts (Yvette Nicole Brown), who invites them to a camp. Riley hopes to join her imminent school's team under Roberts, but Grace and Bree reveal rather belatedly that they'll be going to a different school. Thinking of her future, Riley prioritizes impressing Roberts and team star Valentina Ortiz (Lilimar Hernandez), among other older players, even if it means lying and marginalizing her current friends.
Once again, Riley's actions would be understandable even if we didn't have a peek inside her mind. The same could be said of the few others whose minds we briefly enter. And once again, there isn't much humor on the outside. The climax even includes an anxiety attack, which could be all the more troubling if you've seen one in RL.
On that subject, yes, this story has more of an antagonist than its predecessor, but I don't see Anxiety as a villain per se. However despotic, she means well for Riley and is surprised when her plan backfires. The other newcomers mostly just go along with her, not to the same degree. Even the original emotions don't hate her, except maybe Anger.
The new innovations are artistically intriguing and amusing, not least when we see who else is in the vault. But as before, I would not have made all the same creative decisions. To me, anxiety is a subset of fear. Besides, I certainly felt all those emotions in early childhood. Nevertheless, I find this a more compelling and less problematic take on puberty than Turning Red.
There's more than one lesson here. First, obviously, is not to let your worries take you down a dark path. But the heroes, especially Joy, still learn as well, namely not to suppress uncomfortable memories, because they can play a positive formative role in shaping your character. I approve both messages.
Indeed, I could hardly ask for a more satisfying IO2. I hold it about equal to IO1 and like it better than anything else I've seen this year so far. Not sure what it'll go up against for Best Animated Feature, but I expect it to win.
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