Inside Out: Blu-ray Review
The Movie:
Do you ever look at someone and wonder what’s going on inside their head? Disney-Pixar’s “Inside Out” takes an exciting and hilarious journey into the mind to find the answer. Based in Headquarters, the control center of 11-year-old Riley’s mind, five emotions are hard at work, led by lighthearted optimist Joy (Amy Poehler). She strives to make sure Riley stays happy as she operates alongside fellow emotions Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith).
Emotions are something that everyone has and it’s a theme that every Disney/Pixar movie has but a full film about emotions themselves had me a little skeptical. However, all of that went away as soon as I watched this movie. I really GOT the premise and thoroughly enjoyed it. Then the thought to myself “Of course Pixar is going to put out a fantastic film.”. It really is a no brainer and I should’ve known better because this is another great movie from them. The idea of personifying emotions works so perfectly and makes for some very comedic and relatable moments throughout the film. Poehler has this way about her that just makes you smile all the time and so it made sense that she would voice Joy. I also thought another perfect casting choice was Black as Anger. His comedic persona was always that and having his voice a short character with a short fuse is hilarious to me. My favorite character however was Bing Bong. I loved this him so much. I think because it kind of reminded me of Drop Dead Fred and that it represented was what childhood really is. Then of course there was a moment in the third act involving the character that made me sweat from my eyes just a tad. The other thing that I really liked was the fact that it was so colorful. Everything was so vibrant and fit what the idea of a child’s brain would look like. I’m going to go out on a limb and say that this may be Pixar’s greatest movie to date and that really says a lot given the amount they’ve created already. Definitely watch this film if you haven’t already because this is a great addition to the Pixar library. 9/10
Special Features:
Lava – Such a beautiful short that every single member of my family continues to sing endlessly.
Riley’s First Date? – Another short that was created for this release. Very funny and worth a watch.
Paths to Pixar: The Women of Inside Out – Female cast and crew members talk a bit about their experiences working of the film, their favorite characters and how they connect with the film.
Mixed Emotions – A quick look at the design of the characters.
Audio Commentary
Story of the Story – The voice cast and some of the crew talk about the inception of the idea for the film and how it all came together.
Mapping the Mind – A look at creating the imaginative and silly world of a young girl.
Our Dads, the Filmmakers – The directors’ daughters document their fathers working on the film.
Into the Unknown: The Sound of Inside Out – A small look at creating certain sounds for the film and making sure they al make sense in the films’ story.
The Misunderstood Art of Animation Film Editing – Dealing with the complicated methods of editing together animated scenes.
Mind Candy – A collection of moments from the characters of the film.
Deleted Scenes – A handful of scenes that are presented in a storyboarded way but are enjoyable to check out.
