August Movie Pick: Pixar's 'Inside Out'

You should watch the movie immediately before reading this, as there are some spoilers ahead. But if you need more convincing, be my guest. The movie is a thrill ride that, once you grasp its meaning, will leave you blown away by the accuracy and depth of the ideas it explores. I haven’t seen the second film yet, and while some emotions and logic are missing in the first one, especially considering Riley's age, the exploration of the five core emotions, islands of personality, and memories was such a familiar experience that the movie didn’t just serve as a reminder—it also restored order in my chaotic mind.

There are times when I go months without watching an animated feature, and the last one that really hit home was 'Soul', also by the same studio that brought us this one. 'Soul' is more than special, and here, once again, Pixar delivers. I wish I could have watched this movie as a kid, or even seen a child's reaction to it, to understand how they perceive what’s happening inside Riley’s head. Would they relate? The box office success, along with the positive reception of the second part, seems to suggest that the movie is quite relatable, but does it resonate with everyone as deeply as it did with me?

As I reflect, I have to acknowledge that the movie is also very funny at times and incredibly sad when it needs to be. It’s now the third day since I started watching it. The first night, I had to stop to go to sleep, so I did. The next day, still excited from the night before, I decided to restart it from the beginning with my best friend. He heard almost everything from the first 50 minutes because I couldn’t let the memory go, and my train of thought was Chu Chuing along! Finally, today, we watched the end of it after giving it up for another good night’s sleep yesterday. I am blown away by the incredible portrayal of these core emotions and how easily I connected with everything they did in the movie. The connection between Joy and Sadness wasn’t the original idea, but it ended up being the best one. I would have loved to see more interaction between Fear and Joy, which I heard was the initial plot, but the revelation we got here about the importance of Sadness was perfect.

Most of the movie was easy to follow because I was familiar with the material, but seeing it presented in such a playful way made it even more accessible, especially during the second watch. This confirmed the replay value that an animated film should have. The information flows into you, allowing you to quickly absorb some of the processes happening in our heads and bodies—like how Sadness often came out of nowhere, or how Anger punched Fear almost every time he took control. The connection between the two main characters is beautifully portrayed, and the missing emotion is hardly noticeable. The creators decided that Surprise and Fear are so similar that they didn’t need a separate character. I feel like Envy could have appeared in this movie, but from what I’ve seen, we’ll get a look into that emotion in the second part. The end of the movie also provides a glimpse into the complex world I hope to see in 'Inside Out 2', which is now in theaters. I’ll probably stream it as soon as it comes to Disney+. There’s also a 10-minute short about Riley’s first date that I’ll check out whenever I find the time, and if it inspires me to write, I will. And if Love appears, I’ll definitely have thoughts on that too.

Just as 'Soul' did, 'Inside Out' ignited a longing in me to see more, to revisit other Pixar movies I had set aside just because the animation looked so ugly. The animation here wasn’t exactly my cup of tea either, but that doesn’t matter, because the movie is almost perfect, with incredible meaning and thought behind it. So what if I didn’t like the character designs in the beggining? Eventually, I fell in love with the animation and designs in this film. The movie is educational and touching; that’s what counts. I’ve heard criticism that the movie's message overshadows its almost non-existent story, but for me, that was spot on. It shows how much emotion we battle daily, even in a short story. I’d love to explore imagination more—the sequences in the 'Dream' studio were so good and meta. The abstract scenes were also super fun to watch, even if they didn’t always make sense; I’m sure they consulted with psychologists. The creation and destruction of different personalities and the importance of our core memories were mind-blowing, as was the way different behaviors could destroy personality islands, only to create new ones.

I recently watched an episode of 'Wired' where a surgeon explained how, during a brain operation, they discovered that by stimulating the brain with electricity, the patient regained incredibly detailed memories. This made me wonder if our emotions and memories truly vanish forever or if they remain hidden, accessible only through intense efforts beyond our own abilities. 'Inside Out' is a fascinating portrayal of emotions and memories, the way they work, and how they change—just as complex as the human mind itself.

Iliya Badev