Incredibles 2: Film Review

Incredibles 2: Film Review

Vocal cast: Craig Nelson, Holly Hunter, Bob Odenkirk, Catherine Keener, Samuel L Jackson
Director: Brad Bird

What to say about Incredibles 2 that's not already been said from a multi-million dollar US Box office take and glowing reviews?

Starting the sequel just moments after the original ended nearly a decade and a half ago is a fairly bold move for an animated film that rarely rocks the boat in terms of storytelling but produces a terrific family flick that's well worth your time.

In the latest, when superheroes are outlawed for the mess they make, the Parrs face a life where the world doesn't want them.

But they're offered a lifeline when the wealthy Deavor siblings offer them the chance to make superheroes great again by using Elastigirl and some body cameras to show the world what they can do.

So, reluctantly, Mr Incredible steps back and into the role of domesticity while Elastigirl faces a new enemy - the Screenslaver.

Incredibles 2 ticks all the boxes for animation, blockbuster and family fare. (Even if parts feel distinctly more aimed at adults).

While its 2 hour running time and some obvious plot points stand out, Bird's commitment to ensuring a modern day pastiche of spy drama from the 60s is more than commendable. From a big band OST from Michael Giacchino that is all brass and bluster to spy shenanigans, Incredibles 2 certainly zings as it zags.

From its action opening to some terrifically executed set pieces (Elastigirl vs a train being a well conceived highlight), the film never loses the audience from deep within its thrall. It's also smart enough to give baby Jack-Jack a raccoon nemesis and sequence that feels like an ACME  cum Scrat short film within the film to amuse the younger ends of the audience.

It's fair to say that perhaps the Parr family kids are a little underused - Dash, certainly, and Violet's slumped with a boy problem - but the film's commitment to female forward thinking is obvious from the start.

Slyly commentating on how stay-at-home mums do it all (Mr Parr ends up looking even more weary as the film goes on and he tries to juggle three kids) while putting Hunter's Elastigirl front and centre of it all is the film's smart modus operandi. And it's not just men who save the day here, but a family who pull together to make the difference - again, another positive message for those of all ages and of parenting role models.

And there is commentary on how we're slaves to our screens too - it may have taken nigh on 15 years but Incredibles 2 hasn't held back from embracing the world as it is.

But make no mistake, while Incredibles 2 has sly intentions painted throughout its DNA, its veritable cinematic chutzpah is never in doubt either - it's a film committed to entertaining and does so terrifically throughout.