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Dinner and a Movie Teri Bayus

Dinner & A Movie: ‘Inside Out’ A Mix of Fantasy, Adventure and Comedy

129565_oriBy Teri Bayus

Pixar is back and better than ever with “Inside Out,” a boldly unique animated film that renews our faith in what a giant studio can do with an original concept.
Well, kind-of an original concept, as there was Herman’s Head, a TV show that ran from 1991-94 with the same concept. Herman’s Head residents were an angel (Sensitivity), animal (Lust), wimp (Anxiety), and a genius (Intellect). Maybe the oddest group of characters in sitcom history, but I loved the show.
The plot: For every child, growing up can be exciting, confusing, and difficult. For Riley, who is uprooted from her Midwest life when her father starts a new job in San Francisco, is directed by her emotions — Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling) and Sadness (Phyllis Smith) — in the “Headquarters Control Center” inside Riley’s mind to help her overcome every-day life.
Riley and her emotions struggle to adjust to her new life in San Francisco and emotional disorder arises.
Although Joy, Riley’s main and most fundamental emotion, tries to keep things optimistic, the emotions fight on how best to navigate Riley’s new world.
Inside of Riley’s mind is a complex system of “personality islands,” thought trains, memory storage systems, and a crew in charge of sending forgotten memories to a “dump” where memories are forgotten forever.
Basically, Joy is an overachiever who feels it is her duty to control Riley’s emotions 90% of the time, while limiting the control of the other emotions.
This is obviously a tough time for her. Her new school isn’t that great, her house is nothing special, and her best friend is now hanging out with someone else. All those things combine to make her emotionally unstable, hence the whole “Joy and Sadness” plot.
In a wonderful, animated way, human psychology is the setting where emotions come to life to tell the story of the chaotic. The somewhat abstract events occurring inside Riley’s head, with exceptional attention to detail and an impressive clarity, was fun to witness.
Between nods to the studio’s classics and the work of Hayao Miyazaki, everything is carefully thought and perfectly executed, adding an incredible depth and complexity to the amusing spectacle.
The worlds they go into are fun; the dreamland and subconscious are pleasurable to watch. The lesson at the end is a really good lesson for kids and adults; sometimes being sad is required, you can’t be happy all the time.
Inside Out is a fantastic mixture of fantasy-adventure-comedy and small family drama. It’s a genius work of conception, execution and emotion that will go down in the annals of Disney animation as an instant and enduring classic.

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