The Incredibles (A- or 3.5/4 stars)
Pixar is quite the franchise nowadays. 'The Incredibles', written & directed by Brad Bird is now in a growing line of fantastic animated films such as Toy Story, A Bug's Life, Monsters Inc., & the most recent Finding Nemo. This film tells the story of the Parrs, a family of once-were superheroes who come out of retirement to vanquish an evil that could destroy them & the entire world.
The movie starts & we see a young, dashing Mr. Incredible saving the day with his superpowers. But lawsuits of unlawful rescues come upon the superheroes; they are forced into early retirement & placed under the 'Suburb Superhero Relocation' program {what a funny concept}. The superheroes cannot be special, they must be ordinary & lead every man's life. But superheroes are meant to do good for the people, & dispose of all evil-doers. We cheer when they are triumphant, but can be disappointed with their shortcomings. In this film, we sympathize with Mr. Incredible (voiced by Craig T. Nelson) & Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) when they are forced into the suburbs. We realize that superheroes aren't invincible. They cannot save everyone, & they cannot always save themselves from a life of mediocrity.
Mr. Incredible is now Bob Parr, a man who works for a miserable insurance agency. The appearance of this oversized superhero in a shirt & tie, at a desk job is just too funny. His wife, Helen (formerly Elastigirl), is a stay-at-home mom and tends to their three gifted children. Violet (Sarah Vowell) obtains the power to become invisible and create force fields. There's a cute scene where she doesn't want a cute boy to see her, so she disappears before his very eyes. My nine yr. old sister Nicole would relate to this. Dashiell (Spencer Fox) obtains the power to be lightning fast. He's unhappy that he can't be on the track and field team because he would unfairly win every meet, making him suspicious to all normal human beings. He is an energetic little rascal who will appeal to many young tikes, like my eight yr. old brother, Adam. And the third child is little Jack Jack. Being a baby, he may not have any gifted powers ... yet.
One night, unbeknownst to Helen, Bob & Lucius (voiced by Morgan Freeman, a superhero who can freeze anything) go out on the prowl to search for low-key crimes to fight. Late in the night, Bob comes upon a mysterious woman named Mirage (Elizabeth Pena). She tells Bob that a super villain named 'Syndrome' is plotting to take over the world by way of massive robots called 'Omnidroids'. Bob cannot resist going on the hunt to find & exterminate this villain. However, the cost of this mission may put his life & his families' life in grave danger as he attempts to, again, save the world.
This films answer to 'Dory' from Finding Nemo, comes in the part of Edna E. Mode (a hysterical character voiced by director Brad Bird). This character is funny, charming & pivotal in the pursuit of 'The Incredibles'. This film has a little bit of everything. There is comedy, drama, amazing animated visual effects. Mr. Incredible sniffs out his enemy on a barren Pacific Isle, & the action that takes place there is just magnetic. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this film & my heart was racing for much of it. There are a few moments early on where things could have sped up a bit. But I nitpick.
I got a real kick out of this film. I enjoyed Finding Nemo so much that I almost went into this movie thinking it couldn't be as unique and fun as it was. Animation has come a long way; I like the direction it is taking with such films as this. Another animated film that has recently debuted is The Polar Express. And again, while the animation was not kindred to that in 'The Incredibles', it is also a marvel to look at. I never thought I would be so impressed with 2 completely different, but equally glorious animated films … back to back. 'The Incredibles' has a great plot, fresh characters, & magnificent action sequences. And it is smart enough for adults to appreciate, and youthful enough for children to want to see it over and over again. Simply put, it was nothing short of incredible.
The movie starts & we see a young, dashing Mr. Incredible saving the day with his superpowers. But lawsuits of unlawful rescues come upon the superheroes; they are forced into early retirement & placed under the 'Suburb Superhero Relocation' program {what a funny concept}. The superheroes cannot be special, they must be ordinary & lead every man's life. But superheroes are meant to do good for the people, & dispose of all evil-doers. We cheer when they are triumphant, but can be disappointed with their shortcomings. In this film, we sympathize with Mr. Incredible (voiced by Craig T. Nelson) & Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) when they are forced into the suburbs. We realize that superheroes aren't invincible. They cannot save everyone, & they cannot always save themselves from a life of mediocrity.
Mr. Incredible is now Bob Parr, a man who works for a miserable insurance agency. The appearance of this oversized superhero in a shirt & tie, at a desk job is just too funny. His wife, Helen (formerly Elastigirl), is a stay-at-home mom and tends to their three gifted children. Violet (Sarah Vowell) obtains the power to become invisible and create force fields. There's a cute scene where she doesn't want a cute boy to see her, so she disappears before his very eyes. My nine yr. old sister Nicole would relate to this. Dashiell (Spencer Fox) obtains the power to be lightning fast. He's unhappy that he can't be on the track and field team because he would unfairly win every meet, making him suspicious to all normal human beings. He is an energetic little rascal who will appeal to many young tikes, like my eight yr. old brother, Adam. And the third child is little Jack Jack. Being a baby, he may not have any gifted powers ... yet.
One night, unbeknownst to Helen, Bob & Lucius (voiced by Morgan Freeman, a superhero who can freeze anything) go out on the prowl to search for low-key crimes to fight. Late in the night, Bob comes upon a mysterious woman named Mirage (Elizabeth Pena). She tells Bob that a super villain named 'Syndrome' is plotting to take over the world by way of massive robots called 'Omnidroids'. Bob cannot resist going on the hunt to find & exterminate this villain. However, the cost of this mission may put his life & his families' life in grave danger as he attempts to, again, save the world.
This films answer to 'Dory' from Finding Nemo, comes in the part of Edna E. Mode (a hysterical character voiced by director Brad Bird). This character is funny, charming & pivotal in the pursuit of 'The Incredibles'. This film has a little bit of everything. There is comedy, drama, amazing animated visual effects. Mr. Incredible sniffs out his enemy on a barren Pacific Isle, & the action that takes place there is just magnetic. I was on the edge of my seat for most of this film & my heart was racing for much of it. There are a few moments early on where things could have sped up a bit. But I nitpick.
I got a real kick out of this film. I enjoyed Finding Nemo so much that I almost went into this movie thinking it couldn't be as unique and fun as it was. Animation has come a long way; I like the direction it is taking with such films as this. Another animated film that has recently debuted is The Polar Express. And again, while the animation was not kindred to that in 'The Incredibles', it is also a marvel to look at. I never thought I would be so impressed with 2 completely different, but equally glorious animated films … back to back. 'The Incredibles' has a great plot, fresh characters, & magnificent action sequences. And it is smart enough for adults to appreciate, and youthful enough for children to want to see it over and over again. Simply put, it was nothing short of incredible.