Review: ‘Incredibles 2’ (2018)

The superfamily is back in action!

Written by,
J. Johnson
@sparxmediaz

Back in 2004, a family of superheroes were introduced to the big screen and we all fell in love with them. ‘The Incredibles’ has practically everything you would want in a family-friendly movie that featured a family of superheroes. They covered a range of emotions from jokes about capes, secret identities, and the display of pop culture fandom that molded a great introduction to an audience who could care less about superheroes in the first place. 14 years later and the acceptance of superheroes have shifted to become a mainstream fixture in Hollywood. There’s not a year since that a superhero movie isn’t featured and we have Pixar’s ‘The Incredibles’ to thank heavily for it.

In the ‘Incredibles 2,’ there’s no doubt the wait is worth every minute in this movie and many may disagree with me on this. This animated marvel picks up where they left off with Mr. Incredible (Bob Parr), Elastigirl (Helen Parr), Violet, Dash and Baby Jack Jack where the first one left off. Rather than literally feeling like the series just went off and the producers didn’t know where to go with it, ‘Incredibles 2‘ provides the audience with a feeling like they were frozen in time and return to their normal-super fantastic lives.

This time around, ‘Incredibles 2‘ pins the heroic family against a villain that tests their resolve rather than fighting a hero who doesn’t accept them as a true hero. Screenslaver is a villain who uses screens to hypnotize anyone watching. It’s like a play on Bird’s love for movie aesthetics and a modernize feeling of how we’ve become so reliant on TVs, computers, and our phones. Screenslaver‘s motives are literally straight to the point as he’s annoyed at how blindly and misguidedly consumerist everyone has become. He feels like those caught up in the wonderment of these topics has dulled the experience of human interaction with one another. Screenslaver intents to put an end to this and Municiberg’s dependence obsession with their beloved superheroes.

Most of the original voice cast returns proving that when re-casting occurs it may hurt the feelings of the film as a whole. However, with this one, each actor adds their uniqueness to the film. Frozone aka Lucius Best voiced by Samuel L. Jackson, Craig T. Nelson returns as Bob Parr/Mr. Incredible, Holly Hunter as Helen Parr/Elastigirl, Bird as Edna Mode, Sarah Vowell as Violet Parr. All provide a glimpse at what happens when a family goes through their flaws while evolving int their owns with various dynamics.

Another aspect that becomes apparent is the narrative shift between the members of the Parr family as it tells the story of a household disaster and the struggles of being a group of heroes with powers that can benefit everyone. There’s no doubt Pixar manages to juggle this plot point as they want to keep the basics of a superhero intact. It’s pretty well executed as they also keep some of the first film’s gender politics going with sending Mom to work and having Dad stay home trying to take care of Baby Jack-Jack.

‘Incredibles 2‘ is a great revisit to a family of superheroes that you will manage to love in the end despite some hidden flaws. Bird manages to elevate the characters that need to be elevated and use some modernized superhero tropes that actually work perfectly. It makes this movie worth the wait and a movie that will satisfy those who truly don’t love superhero movies which makes it that more INCREDIBLE!

Rating: 

‘Incredibles 2’ is in theatres today!