Movie Review: The Incredibles 2 · 1:50am Jun 27th, 2018
Fourteen years is a hell of a long time to wait for a sequel.
It's really something to realize that. The Incredibles - one of Pixar's best in my opinion - came out in 2004. I was nine years old at the time... man, that makes me feel old. XD
But anyway, onto the review!
The Incredibles 2 begins, almost immediately where the original movie left off, involving the superheroes Bob Parr / Mr. Incredible (voiced by Craig T. Nelson) and Helen Parr / Elastigirl (Holly Hunter), along with their superpowered kids Dash (Huck Milner, replacing Spencer Fox from the original) and Violet (Sarah Vowell) trying to stop the Underminer (voiced by John Ratzenberger, in a performance that ravages the scenery as much as the character's giant drill machine).
It's a very fast-paced and impressive action sequence, full of numerous entertaining jokes - a particular highlight being the handing-off of family baby Jack-Jack, in a kind of superpowered game of hot potato. I was having a ball through this entire bit 
Finally, the superhero family manage to stop the Underminer's drill machine, with some major help from fellow hero Frozone (voiced by the one and only Samuel L. Jackson, of course)… but unfortunately for the family, Supers are still illegal in the eyes of the government, and so the Parr Family are in some serious hot water with the politicians. (Frozone, thanks to swift action, managed to skate away and evade the ugly aftermath...)
So now, the Parr Family are packed off to a cheap hotel, and things look unpleasant. Adding to the unhappy atmosphere is a dinnertime debate between Bob and Helen, as the simple question "Did we do something wrong?" sparks an uncomfortable debate between Bob and Helen over the ethics of obeying the superhero ban.
(This sequence, while tense, still has very good jokes in it. My personal favorite being Bob's utterly befuddled "What?" to Dash's assertion that superhero stuff "defines who I am." )
However, things start to look up for the Parrs, when Frozone shows up to give an invitation to Bob and Helen. The three of them have been given an offer, by a businessman who says he wants to bring Superheroes back... The guy's background checks out, and he seems legit. With no other real options ahead of them, Helen accepts, and she and Bob are off to meet our two new characters:
Winston Deavor (voiced by Bob Odenkirk) and his sister Evelyn (voiced by Catherine Keener). The CEO of a massive communications company, and a huge childhood fan of superheroes, Winston wants to use his business acumen and his sister's technological genius, to launch the return of Supers. Essentially, his plan is to use mini-cameras to present a positive account of superheroes doing good work, creating good PR to overturn the ban on superhero activity.
Bob is enthused with this plan, but...
The "marketing" of Superheroes' return is based around Elastigirl, NOT Mr. Incredible.
So, while the Parr family is now given a big fancy house to live in as part of their work with the Deavors, while there IS a plan to overturn the law banning superheroes... he's not a real part of it yet.
Thus begins one of the film's main comedic plots, of Bob struggling to be a father at home and learn how to take care of the kids... especially in regard to Jack-Jack, who is displaying a spectacular plethora of superpowers, from laser eyes to self-duplication to turning into a demon-baby... There are many, many bits of comedic gold in all of this, ranging from Bob's tirade against New Math ("WHY WOULD THEY CHANGE MATH?!") to a sequence with Jack-Jack and a raccoon that would almost be at home in a classic Warner Bros. cartoon
Despite a lot of the jokes in Bob's hapless struggle with fatherhood and , I have to give the filmmakers credit for balancing this comedy out with some moments of genuine heartwarming - Bob carrying his two sons to bed is one of the few times I've actually said "Aww..." out loud while watching a film - and also, to me at least, really offering an interesting insight into the male ego, with Bob's steadily mounting frustration and exhaustion over his life at home away from the hero work he wishes he could do. There's a quote from a superhero story that comes to my mind with his character during this part of the movie: "The frustration of a man powerful enough to do everything, and helpless to do anything."
While Bob is struggling with the duties of running a household, Helen is off facing crime through the aid of the Deavors. This part of the film contains two of the film's standout action sequences: the first being a fast-paced motorcycle chase after a runaway train, and the second being a genuinely tense and claustrophobic close-quarters brawl against ominously-masked supervillain "The Screenslaver."
This, unfortunately, leads to my major criticism of the film, being the mystery around said masked supervillain. It is unfortunately quite easy to figure out what the big revelation surrounding the character is... and while I didn't necessarily mind the character's motive (upon later reflection, I actually do rather like the concept), it's easy to feel a bit disappointed, especially in comparison to a villain like Syndrome from the first movie.
Your mileage will definitely vary on this part of the movie, and how it affects the rest of the film.
Me, I personally really enjoyed all the rest of The Incredibles 2. I felt that it offered plenty of enjoyable action and humor to create an entertaining superhero story.
Yes, this film is not as dramatic at points as the original was. It definitely does go for a lighter, more fun touch with parts of its story. The villain is evil and their plan is vile, but at the same time is not as cruelly vicious or horrifying in scope as Syndrome's was...
And yet? I'm rather okay with that.
I'll be honest: the original Incredibles was what you'd call "one in a million." It was one of the all-time greats of superhero movies, this animated film from a company that had never before tackled superhero stories or the characters. It was both original and familiar, taking classic archetypes and styles and using them in clever and inspiring new ways, telling a grand and emotional story... it was truly a once-in-a-lifetime accomplishment. In all fairness, I don't think that a sequel could ever truly reach the same heights of the original...
But for a lighter story that still touches on some of the same themes as the original - family, power and responsibility, idealism versus cynicism - it still works quite well to me.
Certainly there is no fault with the actors. All of them turn in very strong performances, with particular praise should be given to Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter for their more introspective or emotional moments as Bob and Helen... I really love the scene early in the movie where Helen ponders the Deavor's offer.
The new actors also do a very good job too... I did not expect to like Winston Deavor as much as I did, but Bob Odenkirk really sells the charm and idealistic determination that drives Winston's plan to bring back superheroes. 
Catherine Keener does a good job too, with what she has. Her best material involves this one scene with her and Helen over drinks, talking about realists and idealists. I quite liked that part of the film, and thought that it offered some good stuff for the character.
And of course, Brad Bird himself offers another fantastic performance as everybody's favorite superhero fashion designer, Edna Mode. The scene where Bob goes to her for help with Jack-Jack was well worth the price of admission. 
And aside from the performances, the film just looks absolutely freaking gorgeous. Pixar's animation has only gotten better and better, and it allows the movie's design and sequences to really pop! 
So, to conclude, while it may not be as good as the original, I'd still definitely recommend The Incredibles 2. Quite the enjoyable and worthwhile experience, in my humble opinion.
This reminds me of a very apropos song.
That said, I found Jack-Jack's superpower arsenal to be more terrifying than hilarious.
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That video was hilarious!
Eh, fair enough. My dad and I were in stitches watching him. It made me think very much of a classic Tex Avery cartoon; the idea of a superpowered baby making life havoc for his father and other characters.
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Had a thought, Evelyn Deavor, sounds like Evil Endeavor.
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Yeah, I know...
Gotta love a good comic-booky name. And the further irony is that she hates superheroes and their world. I'm sure that if anyone told her that she had a name reminiscent of a Super Villain, she'd be PISSED.
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So pissed.