Film: Incredibles 2

GENRE: Animated Adventure

RATING: PG for action violence
RUNTIME: 1 hour and 58 minutes

STARRING: Craig T Nelson (Coach, Parenthood, Blades of Glory)

Holly Hunter (The Big Sick), Bob Odenkirk (Better Call Saul)

DIRECTOR: Brad Bird (Iron Giant, Mission:Impossible-Ghost Protocol)

WRITER: Brad Bird (Incredibles, Ratatouille, Tomorrowland)

PLOT: Bob has to take care of the kids while Helen is out saving the world and trying to get superheroes reinstated.   

FULL DISCLOSURE: Loved the first film. Little worried about the sequel.

STORY STUFF: Brad Bird is very gifted storyteller. The plot is full of action, humour and family drama. I didn’t find the Elastigirl antics as enthralling as the home stuff. On the home front, watching Bob try to handle his kids was entertaining. Violet had some great teen angst but Dash’s math issues seemed a little tame. The best part of the film, however, is Jack-Jack. He is fantastic. The giggles, the powers, the adorableness, so awesome. There is a fight with a raccoon that will bring the biggest smile to your face.

ACTING STUFF: All the voice acting is well done. The Parr family is strong as usual. Odenkirk has always been quite the salesman. I didn’t recognize Catherine Keener’s (Being John Malkovich) voice as Evelyn, but I didn’t really like her character much anyway. Love Eli Fucile’s as Jack-Jack; did I mention the giggles?

ARTISTIC STUFF: Same outstanding animation you expect from Pixar. I also love how Bird goes for the retro-style wherever he can; it’s so sharp. I will say that two elements seemed to come from strange sources: Speed 2 and Justin Timberlake’s ‘Rock Your Body’ video.

VERDICT: Four stars out of five

SEE IT IF: You enjoy Pixar or the work of Brad Bird or cute babies.

UPCOMING REVIEWS: Ocean’s 8, Tag, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom