Inside Out Review

I love Pixar's movies as much as anyone else. Even though I liked Brave, their last three movies were subpar. We may possibly have that opinion because we'd been spoiled by their previous amazing titles such as WALL-E, Up, and Toy Story 3 and have come to expect similar quality films. Pixar's latest movie, Inside Out (2015), has brought a renaissance in the quality of movie that we've come to expect from their whimsical and emotional stories and characters.

Riley (Kaitlyn Dias) is a happy, hockey-loving 11-year-old Midwestern girl, but her world turns upside-down when she and her parents (Diane Lane and Kyle MacLachlan) move to San Francisco. Riley's Emotions -- led by Joy (Amy Poehler) -- live in Headquarters, the control center inside Riley's mind, where they help advise her through everyday life. As Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to a new life in San Francisco, turmoil ensues in Headquarters. However, the stress of the move brings Sadness (Phyllis Smith) to the forefront. When Joy and Sadness are inadvertently swept into the far reaches of Riley's mind, the only emotions left in Headquarters are Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader), and Disgust (Mindy Kaling). Joy and Sadness get help from Riley's old imaginary friend, Bing Bong (Richard Kind) as they try to get back to Headquarters. Without the full range of emotion, Riley begins to suffer even more emotional pain which begins to have detrimental effects on her personality.

Pixar is notorious for their innovative stories and creative settings. Inside Out was no different. There are effectively two stories going on; the one with Riley and her parents, and the one about the emotions inside Riley's head. Both are interesting and affect on the other. The setting is highly creative and frankly a bit complicated. It's an indication of superior storytelling to present a unique and complex world with specific rules in a short amount of time and in such a way that even the very young audience members can understand it. Here's a trailer which does a remarkable job if showing how part of this imaginative world works in just two minutes:

As a psychology major, Inside Out fascinated me. While the world within Riley's head is full of brilliant colors and whimsical characters and places, it stays pretty accurate to how the brain functions, albeit in a metaphorical way. Psychologiests and other experts were consulted so the writers could make the way Riley's mind works scientifically accurate. For example, it is believed that short-term memories made during the day are converted into long-term memories during sleep. As Riley goes to sleep, the Emotions send the short term memories they've created that day down to long-term memory. A major theme in the story is that being happy is good, but no one can be happy all the time. It also explores the idea that experiencing a full range of emotions, including being angry, scared, or sad, is not only normal but healthy. Inside Out doesn't become preachy by any means, but it does thematically address aspects of emotional and psychological health that are frequently overlooked.

The character of Riley is going through a lot of changes. She is uprooted from her familiar home and moved to a place very different from what she is used to. Riley is experiencing all the anxieties and problems of being the new kid at school. She is growing up and maturing beyond some things she valued at younger stages of her life. And to top it all off, she has the pressure of trying to remain happy in order to show support for her parents when she is clearly unhappy. These are things anyone can relate to, and like many other Pixar movies Inside Out amps up the emotions and really get to you. It's very likely that you'll cry during this movie, though possibly not as much or as quickly as you did seeing Up.

Pixar as always boasted stellar animation, and Inside Out raises their already high bar. The Emotions have a subtly bubbly texture to their skin. Originally the bubbly texture was just supposed to be on Joy, but due to the difficulty of animating this unique design it was scrapped all together. But when Pixar's Chief Creative Officer, John Lasseter, saw it he loved it and insisted that all the characters have it. This caused the technical staff a painfully larger amount of animation work and impacted the budget, but the result is amazing and gives the characters a warm, fuzzy look. There's even some neat things done with lighting, not the least of which includes Joy glowing whenever she gets excited, which makes light dance around objects and other characters around her.

Inside Out is inventive, magnificently animated, emotionally moving, and is a return to the high quality of movies we expect from Pixar.  The cast couldn't be more perfect, especially Amy Poehler and Phyllis Smith; they vocally embody Joy and Sadness with inspiring perfection. The many themes the movie tackles combined with emotional intensity and commentary on mental health makes Inside Out seem like a therapy session where everyone ends up crying and hugging each other. This is the kind of movie we want to encourage Pixar and other studios to keep making. I highly encourage you to see this in theaters, and get a copy of when it hits home video.

Osmosis Jones features characters inside of a body to help it function on a biological level, whereas Inside Out featured characters inside of a mind to help if function on a psychological level. Can you think of other movies featuring characters making a body function like these examples? Comment below and let me know!

The Secret World of Arrietty Movie Review

There isn't a whole lot of anime that I can honestly say I enjoy. So when it is brought up while talking to fellow geeks, I have to talk about the movies made by Studio Ghibli. I haven't seen all of their movies, but the ones I have seen are incredible. Studio Ghibli is kind of like the Walt Disney of Japan in that the Japanese studio makes incredible animated feature films. In 2010, Studio Ghibli's sixteenth film, The Secret World of Arrietty, was released and I've just now got around to seeing it.

 Based on British writer Mary Norton's children's book The Borrowers, the film is about fourteen-year-old Arrietty Clock (Bridgit Mendler). She is a Borrower; four-inch-tall people who live anonymously within the walls of a human family's residence, borrowing simple items to make their home. Arrietty lives with her father Pod (Will Arnett) and mother Homily (Amy Poehler). Arrietty is excited to go on her first "borrowing" trip where she'll help Pod gather supplies from the larger house. The Clock family is nervous about the new twelve-year-old boy Shawn (David Henrie) who has moved in to the house recently. When Pod and Arrietty are seen  by Shawn they fear they may have to move to a safer home. When Shawn attempt to befriend Arrietty, he makes a mess of things and inadvertently draws the attention of the house's caretaker Haru (Carol Burnett), who has been suspicious of the existence of "little people" for years.

I've seen other versions of The Borrowers. There was a TV series starring Ian Holm, an action-based movie starring John Goodman, and a television released movie starring The Doctor Christopher Eccleston. The Secret World of Arrietty is probably the best version I've seen to date. There is a different set of voice actors for the Japanese, United Kingdom, and United States dubbing; I've listed the United States cast only because that's the one I happened to see.

The color and proportions are incredible!

As usual Studio Ghibli's art style was remarkable! It's visually lush and beautifully detailed. You could pause the move at just about any point and admire that one frame for all the detailed beauty and heart that went into it. I'm partly colorblind and even I thought the greens used to color the verdant grass was gorgeous. The colors are beautiful and the imagery is beautiful to see.

One of the amazing details in the animation was how realistic the physics were. To a tiny human, a portion of water, for example, will move differently. A Borrower would drink a drop of water instead of a eight ounces. Thus to Arrietty, a drop of water will loom and drip like syrup. The sounds of a ticking clock reverberates immensely, and something like tissue paper is large and stiff. Other versions of The Borrowers have tried to capture the difference that size would have on normal physics, but I don't think any of them has done it as remarkably well as this one. The camera work also helps illustrate the size difference. The scenes with the Borrowers use wide angles from low angles to capture the enormity of the house from their perspective. The animators are always very careful about being consistent with size when a borrower and a human are interacting; other versions aren't always so meticulous about that detail. It causes the difference in size to be more believable.

The movie moves a bit slower than I expected, but it is paced perfectly. The story unfolds gradually and progresses evenly. That's not to say there is no action or that it's a slow movie. Most other versions of The Borrowers are fast paced so that the kid viewers who have a presumably short attention span won't get bored. This results in an underdeveloped story that moves at a dizzying pace. It may bore some viewers under the age of four, but I think The Secret World of Arrietty is a great way to help young kids appreciate well made films that are not bombastically over-the-top and moves at a rushed paced.

The Secret World of Arrietty is an outstanding movie, as has been my experience with other Studio Ghibli films. It doesn't have the epic scale of Spirited Away or Princess Mononoke and the seemingly "kid-friendly" vibe may put off some adult viewers. Even if you are an adult I recommend watching this film. It's absolutely beautiful to behold and is impeccably paced and its drama is perfectly developed. It's also good to see an adventure movie with a strong female protagonist. I think The Secret World of Arrietty is worth owning on Blu-Ray and watching often.

Do you have a favorite Studio Ghibli movie? Which one is it and why? Comment below and tell me all about it!