Inside Out 2 Is The Sequel Gold Standard

Yes, of course there are exceptions. Aliens, Back to the Future II, Frozen 2 — the list goes on. But the truth is that in general, sequels suck. So, of course I was a bit worried when one of the best Disney Pixar films announced a sequel. Happily, I can report that my kids and I absolutely adored Inside Out 2, and I urge you to rush to the theater regardless of your age or parental status. 

For those who don’t remember, the first Inside Out film is about a young girl, Riley, who finds herself moving to San Francisco from Minnesota during middle school, the worst possible time ever for a kid!

Even as her parents try to show her the bright side, bad things keep happening — their moving truck gets lost, Riley’s dad has to rush off to work more than Riley anticipated, and Riley misses her friends more than ever. Meanwhile, viewers get to see what’s happening inside Riley’s mind via representatives for her emotions. 

In Inside Out 2, Riley is back with the emotions we’ve grown to love — Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Disgust (Liza Lapira), Fear (Tony Hale), and Anger (Lewis Black).

The team seems to be getting along great this time around, as Riley prepares for high school and is thrilled to be joining a hockey skills camp to see if she’ll be picked for the high school hockey team. Unfortunately, her emotional team discovers that puberty is about to kick in. 

Suddenly, four new emotions join the console in Inside Out 2, the emotions that come with teenage hormones — Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), and Ennui (Adele Exarchopoulos).

As Riley realizes that her two best friends from middle school will be heading off to a different high school, and that she really wants to make the team for her future high school, her emotions kick into high gear. 

GFR SCORE

Anxiety takes over and starts making wild projections for the future, and, of course, Riley makes really stupid mistakes as a result. When Joy tries to step in, stopping Riley from letting Anxiety take over, Anxiety launches Joy and the rest of the original crew to the back of Riley’s mind.

So all Riley is left with at this hockey camp, really, is Anxiety and Envy, and a little bit of Embarrassment and Ennui. Inside Out 2 is every early teenage nightmare brought to the screen. 

I sat in the audience and laughed as Joy tried to get Anxiety to relax, I cried as Joy noted that perhaps part of growing up meant having less joy, and I turned to hug my kids as the emotions tried their best to work together for the good of Riley because the overarching theme in Inside Out 2, just like in the first film, is that they love their girl.

It’s not easy being a kid growing into an adult. And it’s not easy being a parent watching your kid struggle. Which is why this highly relatable movie is for everyone. Go see it!