Summary
The greatest superhero family of them all once showed us how it was done. It’s just possible that it’s all been done before now.
“If you had simply done nothing,” the authorities tell the titular heroes, “then everything would be proceeding in an orderly fashion.” It’s hard not to feel the same way about INCREDIBLES 2. In the 14 years since Brad Bird’s original, few superhero stories have challenged its mastery of the form. In fact, despite multiple attempts, it still remains the best Fantastic Four film ever put to screen. Yet capturing lightning in a bottle is difficult at the best of times, and despite the fierce presence of Elastigirl it’s even a stretch for Pixar.
INCREDIBLES 2 picks up moments after the first film left off. When the Parr family fails to stop the Underminer, authorities become concerned by the amount of damage caused and shut down the “Super Relocation” program. However, they get a lifeline when tycoon Winston Deaver (Bob Odenkirk) and his sister Evelyn (Catherine Keener) offer them a chance at a publicity stunt to bring supers back into the light. Bob (Craig T. Nelson) takes a backseat to look after the kids as Helen (Holly Hunter) becomes the new face of heroism in town.
From the stylised opening credits to the first comforting appearances of Frozone or Edna Mode, there is more than a little bit of that old magic left in the spandex. When Bird’s sequel hits its stride, during a dazzling train chase involving Elstigirl, we are in a golden age of animated action. Jack Jack showcasing his multiple new powers against a neighbourhood raccoon is a comedy masterpiece, a continuation of the Jack-Jack Attack short film on a massive scale.
Yet INCREDIBLES 2 feels more like a collection of these moments than it does a feature narrative. Struggling with the connective tissue between the set-pieces, there’s some severe pacing issues in the middle act of this hero’s journey. Bob hanging around as a stay-at-home dad might be one of the more progressive stories of the genre, but there’s a lot of it.
Which is not to take anything away from the animation team. One of Pixar’s most accomplished productions to date, a side-by-side comparison shows us just how far the art has come in the last decade and a half. There’s water you want to dip your hands into, food good enough to eat, and a 1950s production aesthetic that gets cooler every day. It’s just a shame that the accompanying narrative is a predictable affair, a “law versus justice” debate that often feels more like a greatest hits package than a continuation of something great.
In a year when Ready Player One used Bird’s The Iron Giant as a weapon of war, a less than perfect Incredibles film might feel like a double blow. There’s still a lot to love here, and it’s definitely fun to revisit these characters. It’s just that so much time has passed since the original, and the landscape is a different one. Where the first film reminded us of why we loved superheroes, this one simply follows the current pack of them.
