When Writer-Director Brad Bird gave us "The Incredibles" in 2004, I was impressed at how he successfully did a mash-up film of the Fantastic Four superhero family premise, a bit of deconstruction to the comic book superhero genre, and also tossed in a James Bond spy aesthetic. It's easy to argue that "Incredibles 2" is very similar to the previous installment. The superhero family dynamic is still very much present with a few tweaks, the comic book superhero genre deconstruction was increased quite a lot, while the spy stuff has been minimized a little bit. The end result is still thankfully the same though, as this sequel is simply incredible just like the first one!
There's a lot that was done right with this, from the amazing action sequences (that train set piece!), an enjoyable sense of humor (the kids!), a huge amount of story themes and metaphors to really chew on (like the Elastigirl and Mr Incredible role reversals), plus the fantastic ensemble cast of characters that the phenomenal voice talents get to perform. Forgive my hyperbole, but I think that this animated film will go down as one of the best superhero movies of all time, let alone being one of the best superhero movie sequels of all time.
It's not perfect though, and it takes some risks that might alienate some people. While the execution of the narrative is superb, there are many elements in the plot that leans on the derivative, with it showing it's over reliance to the superhero plot formula, some probably execusable plot conveniences, and most everything to do with the villain. If you've seen enough superhero movies, you're going to be able to predict where the story is going, even though I'm assuming you're at least going to have fun in the process of doing so. Oh, there are those seizure inducing moments to look out for though.
What's arguably the most interesting; or controversial, aspects of "Incredibles 2" are the themes and metaphors that are spread out throughout the plot. You can gleefully just watch the story move along as is, but if you are willing to dig deep into the plot reveals, the world building, several of the conversations, you'll find that there's actually a lot to digest about what the whole thing is trying to say to you. I'm not going to go into detail there; because spoilers, but that element of the film is what I think elevates it into something beyond just being another superhero movie.
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