The Incredibles

A truly excellent critique! 👍

Melissa Moore32 said:I just walked through my front door after hitting the theater, and I honestly can't stop grinning—The Incredibles was just that good. 👍

There aren't even enough words in the dictionary to describe how great this movie was... actually, there are, I just haven't learned them all yet. 😁 (™ Monkey Island 😉 ).

Anyway, I'm going to go sit down and reflect 😂 on the film—and maybe try to wake up my legs after those cramped seats at Sinister Cinema... I'll post a short essay tomorrow explaining why this is easily the best thing I've seen all year, and also why I absolutely loathe Sinister.

can't wait - I love your movie essays—you never just talk about the film itself, you always weave in a million little details about the theater, the drive there, everything...

It’s already tomorrow if you hadn't noticed 😠

😁

Donna Nelson23 said:It’s already tomorrow if you haven't noticed. 😠
😁

It’s basically the day after tomorrow at this rate... and I actually have my midterm results coming in today, so I've been hitting the books pretty hard lately...

I’m also struggling a bit to figure out what to write about this movie because it really hit me hard. I don't want my thoughts to just end up being those shallow comments like, "That was awesome... man, you should've seen that... Shrek doesn't even come close to this." 😁

Come on, you've got it easy—but only because I know there's no need to rush when it comes to creativity, and I've got all the time in the world 😬

It’s honestly incredible how much motivation you get to write movie reviews right after failing an economics exam... but anyway, let's put my academic struggles aside for a second...

I was hearing nothing but hype for The Incredibles a full month before they even hit theaters. That usually turns out to be a bad sign for me, because it tends to jack up my expectations way too high, and then I just end up disappointed. However, there was one small consolation: it was a Pixar film (not to mention they're still stuck in that restrictive contract with Disney 🙂) and the people praising it were folks who don't typically go crazy for American animated movies.

Anyways, during the absolute chaos of finals week at college, I barely managed to scrape together a decent time slot to catch The Incredibles, and then... what happens? I end up breaking every single rule I have for watching something I actually care about. I didn't go solo; I went with a friend. I didn't hit an early matinee; I went to the 10 PM showing. And to top it all off, I went to Sinister Cinema... unbelievable. Still, one good thing about Sinister is that they have a massive parking lot and they validate your ticket so you don't have to pay for parking, which was a lifesaver since it started pouring rain that Sunday 🙄 so we had to drive.

We got to the concession stand around 9:30, and I pull a receipt from Walmart out of my pocket where I'd scribbled down our reservation number. *My friend gives me this look.* Great... Theater 9... now where on earth is that? 🤔

After wandering around for a bit and doing a whole lot of walking, we finally hit the stairs to the right floor and grabbed some popcorn. 👍 Oh, right—another plus point: the popcorn is actually enough to last through those $6.75... though, honestly, it's cheaper to buy snacks somewhere else... but whatever.

Before heading into the theater, I spent some time chatting with my friend and discreetly eyeing one of the employees at Sinister. She kind of reminds me of Neva Campbell, just a bit thinner, but sweeter and all 🙂 and 😍.... man, I wish I was in the theater with her, I thought. At this point, I was already spinning these fantasies about swapping places with my friend so I could go into the movie with the cute employee while my friend stayed behind to scan tickets... the only problem was the popcorn my friend was holding... 'wouldn't be fair to her either'.

My daydreaming was cut short by the theater doors swinging open and the signal to head in.

I picked out some prime seats right at the transition point of the auditorium, so I could stretch my legs as much as I wanted without kicking the people in front of me... my friend sat three rows back...😂.....(just kidding, Anthony, just kidding)

The lights dim, and the projection starts.

SHORT FILMS:

Instead of the usual trailers I'm used to seeing before a movie, I was pleasantly surprised by two short Pixar shorts.

The first was a trailer for their upcoming film, "Cars," coming out in 2005. Definitely adding that to my watchlist. I mean, two cars sitting in a drive-in theater watching a movie about car racing... priceless. 😂

After that, there was some film about a lamb and a rabbit, or something, I can't remember the name. Basically, the movie looked like it had wandered away from the Human Rights Film Festival and accidentally ended up at Sinister. It was a sweet story with a good moral and lovely animation.

And that wrapped up the segment that served as a perfect intro to The Incredibles... or maybe it wouldn't have been if it hadn't happened...

ICEPICK'S AD BREAKDOWN:

Irony is a nasty thing, don't you think? I was scrolling through that thread on the Movie Forum the other morning—you know, the one asking "Why do we even have to sit through commercials at the theater?"—and I honestly found myself wondering what people were actually complaining about. It’s not like the ads are *that* unbearable. I mean, what’s the big deal if you have to sit through a few commercials before the movie starts? I guess some people just love to complain for the sake of it.

That was just my take based on my recent trips to the movie theater. Honestly, if there are even five minutes of commercials before the film starts, I already feel like it's way too much.

The vibe at Sinister Cinema is a completely different story... 15... but I'm talking about 15 damn minutes of nonstop commercials. I was already starting to tap my foot, drumming my fingers on the armrest, and glancing at my watch like crazy.

TRAILERS:

I’ve been bombarded by so many damn commercials that I honestly can’t even remember which trailers they actually showed, or if there were any at all. I mean, yeah, they were there, but I seriously have zero recollection of them. Once the ads finally wrapped up, I thought, "Okay, great, now I can actually sit back and enjoy the movie," but then... nope. Just more commercials. Seriously, pass the popcorn, because this is ridiculous! 😠

At that exact moment, I decided to make a run for more popcorn. It looked like there were at least ten minutes of commercials left, and our stash was running dangerously low. When I hit the concession stand, I was met with quite the sight: about six or seven cute girls jumping around and doing everything under the sun *except* actually serving the popcorn. Usually, that wouldn't bother me, but this time I was genuinely worried I’d miss the start of the movie. Still, based on how long the last commercial block lasted, looking at all the sponsors for Sinister, I figured there was almost no way it would take that long... boy, was I wrong.

By the time I finally reached the theater entrance, the doors were already shut, which pretty much meant I’d missed the start. I scrambled inside as fast as I could—trying to be all stealthy like something out of a Roberto Benigni movie—and hurried to my seat. I think I ended up missing maybe 30 seconds of the film, at most.

Since I only have one smiley left that I can actually use in this post, I'm using this one. Because it pretty much sums up exactly how I was feeling at that moment.

*an hour and a half later*

Maybe it’s a little weird to start describing a movie from the end rather than the beginning, but the reason is the one thought that’s been looping in my head since the credits rolled: "I can't believe Disney produced a movie that isn't actually for kids." And seriously, setting aside the fact that it's an animation, setting aside the whole "superhero" thing, and setting aside how the entire production seems perfectly aligned with those heavy-handed censors we have in the US, this just isn't a kid's movie. It’s too smart, too clever, and too much of a...je ne sais quoi for anything else, much like Tim Burton’s “Pre-Christmas Nightmare.”

Now, someone is inevitably going to ask: "How so? Haven't there been animated movies aimed at older audiences before, even if they were technically made for the youngest viewers?"

Sure, they might be aimed that way, but this time the situation is flipped. Unlike Aladdin, The Lion King, Nemo, and the rest of the gang—which are fundamentally for kids but peppered with enough jokes and scenes to keep the older crowd or parents from falling asleep, or just "leaming" (yes... I just made that word up)—this is a movie where parents should probably be the ones dragging the kids to the theater, not the other way around.

What’s really happening here? It’s a very old trick that the entire animation industry has been using for decades, yet Americans just can't seem to wrap their heads around it: presenting serious themes and real-life struggles in a metaphorical way without hitting you over the head with the message like some idiot in a quarry.

So, what do we have? We have a movie about superheroes that isn't really about superheroes, because after about 15 minutes, it becomes clear to everyone that this is more of a human drama than mindless fun with wacky caped crusaders. Don't get me wrong, it's not *that* heavy-handed, because visually it still looks like X-Men meets Spy Kids with the occasional detour into a James Bond flick, but tucked inside that visual style are thousands of tiny details, references, situations, and problems we deal with every single day. I’d go so far as to say the film is more of an allegory for the life of an average (American, if that makes it easier) family than anything else.

And that’s what sets this apart from the mountain of clones we’ve been fed over the last few years—movies that care more about looking shiny and wowing the audience, but when you scratch the surface, you find nothing but emptiness... or worse. 🙂

– on the characters –

There was mention of the characters being two-dimensional... well, duh. Saying Disney has two-dimensional characters is like saying Dali painted weird pictures, or that the sky is blue... it's stating the obvious. *shrugs*

True, the depth of the characters leaves something to be desired, but that’s pretty standard for most animated films coming out of the major studios and, IMNSHO, it's totally expected, so I can't say it ruined the movie for me.

Granted, there are plenty of areas for improvement, but as old Americans would say, "if it ain't broken, don't fix it," and that applies to the characters too. For what they're intended, they look great, both in design and personality... but we'll get to the animation later.

I also want to mention the voice acting which, personally, is always a highlight of any Disney production. Craig T. Nelson was a stellar choice for Mr. Incredible, especially since every time he spoke, I kept seeing his character from that series The District, which I was obsessively watching until recently, and it fits perfectly... honestly.

The rest of the cast is great too; the only thing is that the main villain could have been a tiny bit more 😁, even though Jason Lee is a legend. And I'm bummed that Samuel L. Jackson didn't get a bit more text... I love listening to him, and one of my favorite scenes is the one with the glass of water...🙏Oh, I almost forgot about that awesome John Ratzenberger voice cameo at the end of the film as THE UNDERMINER!!!!111one 😂

As for the rest of the cast, Elastigirl is charming, the kids are cute, Mirage is hot, and Edna is in a league of her own... honestly, she’s easily the best character in the whole movie, and if there were more of her, it probably wouldn't even work. 😉 She dominates every scene like some kind of diva, and she manages to pull a smile out of me every single time. The voice acting is also spot on and fits the character perfectly. Major props to Brad Bird... he wrote it, directed it, and did the voices too.

Regarding the American DUB, I haven't heard it myself, even though everyone seems to be raving about it... but I have to admit, now that I've seen the film, it's hard for me to imagine our local actors voicing these characters.

– regarding the plot and humor –

It’s just simple, tight, and never feels forced at any point. Brad Bird proved once again that he's an excellent screenwriter and a skilled enough director that the movie doesn't feel like it's "dancing" between different age groups. The plot is consistent and the humor is well-tailored to the target audience, yet it doesn't leave those looking for a bit more substance or different tastes feeling left out.

There's slapstick, satirical bits, movie references, jokes poking fun at other superheroes and their stereotypes... you name it, it's there. But at every moment, that humor serves the main idea of the film, and it never feels like it's trying too hard to please absolutely everyone.

Personally, one of my favorite scenes or gags was when Bob, totally cramped up in that cubicle where he works, helps that old lady get her insurance claim sorted, and when he finally pulls it off after all that struggle, you hear: ''Your lunchbreak is over....''.

A quick little detour from the movie....

I have to say, the atmosphere in the theater was great... you could tell the crowd was actually having a blast and enjoying the movie because there wasn't any whispering, chatting, or people getting up constantly. And everyone laughed at pretty much the right times, which tells me the film really hit the mark with the audience.

'Back to the movie'...

– regarding the animation –

When it comes to animation, Pixar makes great movies, and we all know that. So, I won't go on a huge philosophical rant about it. Everything is done in full CGI and looks beautiful yet functional; we don't get that feeling that the animation team was just doing something just so they could say ''See what we can do'' only for people to look at them and ask, ''So what does it actually do?''—just being aimless. (Shrek 2 anybody???)

I especially love the character design because it leans into a more caricatured style (like big heads and thin bodies), which is different from what we usually see from Pixar or even Disney. (Though sometimes Disney's style is basically caricature itself... but let's move on...)

– how does it compare to...? –

I can't write this review without comparing it a bit to the other animated hits from the last year or so.

''Finding Nemo'' – that's like comparing Lord of the Rings to Harry Potter.... OK, maybe not quite that massive a gap, but you get what I mean. This is a film that targets a slightly more mature audience while still carrying a message for the little ones, whereas Nemo was definitely made for kids but remained fun for adults... sort of a reverse situation, I guess.

''Shrek 2'' – one is pretentious garbage made by people who think they know how to make a good animated film 🙄, and the other is 'actually' a good animated film... you guys can guess which is which. 😉

Hmm... yeah, if both films are nominated for an Oscar and Shrek 2 beats The Incredibles, I am officially done watching any new American animated films ever again.

''Animal Farm'' – 🙂 😂OK... I honestly can't even begin to compare the two.

– final thoughts –

It feels like the weaker the link between Pixar and Disney becomes, and the more freedom they get to just do their own thing, the better Pixar's movies actually turn out... I’m honestly terrified to think what might happen if they ever become a fully independent studio with their own distribution, instead of having to rely on thieves like Disney every single time. 😲

And that's that.... now I can finally go watch Tokyo Godfathers, which has been sitting on my shelf for months and I only just realized I actually owned it..... maybe I'll do a review of that too... though probably much, much shorter. :-D

P.S.

Maybe I just upgraded myself from a mere Fanboy to a Profundus Maximus... but whatever.

It feels only fair to mention that Brad Bird isn't actually Pixar.

Five years ago, he directed The Iron Giant for Warner Bros.. And The Incredibles were actually supposed to be made using traditional animation methods.

But hey, it is what it is.
The Incredibles is easily the best animated film this season. Unlike Shrek 2, it doesn't try to force a laugh out of you at every single opportunity; instead, it attempts (and succeeds!) to be an intelligent parable about individuality versus mediocrity.

I was especially thrilled by how they prioritized character believability and expressive movement over pure photorealism. You really have to be a master to pull off that kind of style, and they truly are.
It reminded me of a short little cartoon I saw earlier this year at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival during the student program—'The Sparrow Who Wanted to Fly'. While most of the other films were obsessing over lush, life-like textures, the Sparrow stuck to a simple collage of basic geometric shapes—squares, triangles, circles—and somehow managed to squeeze more emotion out of those shapes than all the other films combined. It followed that classic Eastern European school of thought, which honestly didn't surprise me one bit.

It’s the same vibe with The Incredibles—especially with Violet, who starts the movie looking practically like one big eye peeking through her hair. It was more than enough to let us know she’s just your typical "struggling teenager." 😁

...
I watched the American dub, and I have to say, it’s absolutely top-notch. Bojan Gragurić was fantastic, and the woman voicing Edna was perfect (someone mentioned she sounds just like Anton Marti 🤣). Even the localization is brilliant—it's refreshing when someone realizes you should translate the spirit of a joke rather than just the literal words. They even threw in a clever little gag about being "0.0 percent BAC." 😁

...
Best lines?
"Is that glitter on your coat?"
"They're penetrating our bureaucracy!!!!"
And of course, Bomb Voyage's insult toward the fanboy's costume 😁

Melissa Moore32 said:The first thing they released was the trailer for their upcoming movie, ''Cars'', which is set to hit theaters in 2005.

Then, just a few days ago, news broke that they've actually pushed the release date back to 2006.

To be honest, I’m not feeling particularly optimistic about it.
It just looks a little uninspired to me—I can't help but wonder if the folks over at Pixar are hitting a bit of an creative rut? There were already some hints of that happening back when they were working on Nemo.

And that’s exactly why you bolted from the Forum, Richard Hernandez13... just to sit there and lurk while you read everything I write.😳 😁

Richard Hernandez13> I guess it would be only fair to mention that Brad Bird isn't actually a Pixar guy.

Fair enough. 👍

I haven't really done much digging into him... I just know he had some connection to the Simpsons, or something like that. If that's actually true, you can probably spot it in The Incredibles.

Richard Hernandez13> I guess The Incredibles really should have been made using traditional animation methods.

Honestly, I just can't wrap my head around that right now. 😵 The movie looks amazing exactly the way it is. I can't help but wonder, though—how much longer would the production have actually taken if they had gone with traditional animation instead?🤔

Besides that, who would even bother doing it? I mean, Disney basically shut down the entire department that handled classic animation, and then you've got Pixar and DreamWorks, which strictly stick to CGI now.

Maybe it would just be WB or 20th Century Studios left standing... perhaps... *leers to the left*

Richard Hernandez13> I honestly, that translation is spot on—it’s about time someone realized you're supposed to translate the actual vibe and meaning, not just a literal word-for-word dump of the content. They even managed to sneak in that little joke about the '0.0 BAC.'

Well, now I actually have to sit down and watch this with the American DUB.

I remember when Fish Police used to air on NBC—though I’d actually seen it on Cartoon Network first. The translation they used was just painful; it was literal, word-for-word nonsense.👎 Of course it wasn't funny...

I have to admit, sometimes our translators go way overboard when they try to "localize" things. Take *Animal Farm*, for example—they really overdid it there. 🙄

Richard Hernandez13> It was announced just a few days ago that they pushed it back to 2006.

Oohhhhh. 😢

Richard Hernandez13> I don't know, it doesn't look particularly promising to me.

I don't know, it seems alright to me... like some lighthearted entertainment. I actually dig the character designs, and honestly, some of the scenes remind me of that old Lego animation. 🙏

The animation looks great, though I guess we’ll just have to wait and see how all of this actually turns out in the end.

I’m not exactly expecting anything spectacular here, nor am I anticipating something on the level of The Incredibles, but I guess it’ll be a decent enough movie to catch at the local cinema just for some fun.

Richard Hernandez13> I guess maybe Pixar is having an identity crisis? There were definitely some signs of that in Nemo.

Who knows... *shrugs*

But it doesn't necessarily mean that... maybe they'll just pick up a solid script or something similar in the meantime and churn out another hit. Because honestly, the way things look right now, Pixar is pretty much the only studio worth watching—everything else seems to have gone straight to Honduras. 😂

When exactly did DreamWorks Animation hit the stock market? If I recall correctly, they were valued at around $600 million.

To be honest, they’re probably the biggest silver lining for the whole DreamWorks company right now, especially since their film division hasn't exactly been having its best moment lately.

Melissa Moore32 said:Lejminga (yes... I think I just invented that term)...

Well, you certainly nailed it. Just like that little bit of "validation." I honestly have no idea how you managed to pull that together so seamlessly... 😉

Melissa Moore32 said:Comparing "Finding Nemo" to "Lord of the Rings" or "Harry Potter"... it’s a bit like comparing apples to oranges...

Wow, slow down just a second, let’s not go too hard on Nemo... So, regarding the entire cast of The Incredibles—and I'll give credit where credit is due to whoever actually started this thread with all those compliments—just please stop comparing them to the rest of the Pixar lineup... You should really be measuring them against DreamWorks, Warner Bros., or even the usual Disney fare instead...

P.S.
Nemo is essentially a cartoon for adults that kids happen to be able to watch, rather than the other way around... 😁
Don't tell me you're actually laughing at a joke meant for children...

Jamie Sanchez48> You really did it. It’s like you’re just out here "validating" everything now. I guess, how on earth did you even manage to pull that together?

Ugh, that was just a typo...😵 It was supposed to be a validation... you know, for the English part. To validate...but I didn't really double-check my spelling, so some stuff ended up being written wrong. I'm pretty sure there are probably more typos in there too. 😂

I guess I could throw that into a sentence for you. "Excuse me, do you validate parking tickets here?" It’s pretty straightforward, though I suppose depending on where you are in the city, you might have to ask a few different times before anyone actually gives you a straight answer.

Honestly, while I was typing this out, I kept thinking about that one line from Monkey Island 3—you know, one of those "wrong" answers during an Insult Melee where Guybrush asks, “Can I get my parking ticket validated?” That’s pretty much where the whole idea of "validating" came from, I guess. 😉

A "lejming" is basically like how people here try to adopt American slang—you know, like when someone says "cool-esque"—but it actually comes from the word... That was pretty lame.. 😁

There you go. Explained. 😂 (Yeah, I know they aren't actual words—just slang, at least—but I think they sound pretty funny.) 😁)

Jamie Sanchez48> Wow, wow, slow down there, let's not go after Nemo just yet. Look, I'll give credit to everyone in The Incredibles cast—I mean, who was it that even made the first post praising them anyway?—but please, stop comparing The Incredibles to the rest of the Pixar lineup.

Look, I'm not saying anything against Nemo... it's a great movie and all that, but IMNSHO, The Incredibles is clearly better. I honestly doubt anyone's going to top that anytime soon.

And why on earth shouldn't we compare movies from the same studio? It's pretty straightforward to me. Just like I might argue that Aladdin is better than... I don't know... Mulan, I feel like The Incredibles is better than Nemo. It's just an opinion, but I'll stand by it.

Besides that, you can see there’s really no point in trying to compare it to movies from other studios. 😉

Jamie Sanchez48> I guess you could say Nemo is basically a cartoon for adults that kids can watch too, rather than the other way around.

Look, I don't know about you, but I disagree... it’s an animated movie that kids love, sure, but adults get just as much out of it. 🙂

Jamie Sanchez48> Don't tell me I'm supposed to laugh at some joke meant for toddlers.

So? It’s really not that big of a deal. I mean, deep down, every single one of us still has that inner kid who loves this kind of stuff. It’s perfectly normal—and honestly, totally okay—to laugh at those kinds of jokes, provided they're actually funny, of course.

Look, humor is humor. If a joke actually lands and works, then it’s good, regardless of who it's aiming at.

I ended up rewatching them all again today. 😬

By the way, those two grandpas you see at the end are actually Ollie Johnson and Frank Thomas (rest in peace)
—two of the legendary original Disney animators from the group famously known as the "Nine Old Men."

Fun fact: both of them actually visited Columbus once upon a time. 😁

Remember when I mentioned The Iron Giant to you, Melissa Moore32? You’d probably love watching it right about now... 😁 But I was an idiot and recorded it on a tape, and then some stupid accident trashed the whole thing. 😢 Maybe one day when I actually have decent internet access I'll just download it.

Anyway, The Incredibles are mostly awesome. That line about "penetrating our bureaucracy" is totally original—it's just a literal translation, even in English.

The ONLY thing that bugged me (and yeah, Melissa Moore32 will get why) is how they hyped up this giant robot destroying the city, only for the bot to show up and... barely do anything. When am I finally gonna see a high-budget film (or just really good animation) about m a s a o V n o m destruction of a massive US metropolis during a fight between giant robots? 😁 And no, I haven't seen Sky Captain yet, someone tell me if it actually has stuff like that.
👋

Even Sky Captain doesn't have too much going for it.

An amazing animated film!
I mean, calling this an "animated movie" feels like an understatement; it’s more convincing than 90 percent of Hollywood live-action films.
It's funny as hell—and I don't mean for kids, but more for us older folks.
Luckily, they have subtitled screenings available; I honestly can't imagine how our local voice actors would even handle this one.
Actually, I do know.

Just give them the Oscar already!

Wow. I can't quite recall the last time I sat through an action movie this genuinely good. I believe it might have been the third Indiana Jones. Or perhaps "Die a Man." I honestly couldn't say.

Wow.

slyrider16 > The only thing that actually annoyed me—and Melissa Moore32, please don't come for me—is how much they hyped up this whole plan involving a robot destined to level the city. They build all this tension around this machine coming into town and starting its rampage... but then we barely see any of it. Seriously, when am I actually going to see a high-budget movie (or even just one with decent animation) that focuses on the massive, total destruction of a megalopolis during a fight between giant robots?

Heh...😁 🙂

I mean, at the end of the day, it’s a Disney production, not something by Go Nagai. But yeah, I guess they could have caused a bit more damage to those buildings. 🙂I mean, I still think Americans deal with some serious phobias whenever they see buildings starting to crumble. 😬

casualotter21 said:Wow. I honestly can't remember the last time I sat through an action movie that was actually this good. I think the last one might have been the third Indiana Jones. Or maybe it was Die a Man. I don't know.

Wow.

Look, it just doesn't work like that... you really need to put in some actual effort here.🙂And don't put this on the blog. 🙄 That’s just not how it works.

Melissa Moore32 said:Well, it doesn't work quite like that... you'll have to try a little harder...🙂...

Look, over the last year—or maybe eighteen months—I haven't really gone out of my way to write about how much I enjoyed a movie. What’s actually the point of repeating myself?

But I can tell you this: "The Incredibles" is one of those adventure films that will serve as my benchmark for everything else moving forward. I might group "Die a Man" one and three, the "Lethal Weapon" series, "Batman Returns", "X-Men 2", and the first and third "Indiana Jones" movies in that same category. I’m actually glad "The Incredibles" was the last movie I saw in theaters this year; if I had watched them *before* all the other films I’ve reviewed lately, none of those others would have seemed even half as good.

Compared to "The Incredibles," "Spider-Man 2" pales in comparison, "Van Helsing" feels like a somewhat charming but mindless flick, "Hellboy" has some decent ideas and bits of fun, and "Sky Captain" is basically just a colorful picture book. It isn't necessarily that these other films are bad, it's just that "The Incredibles" are so... incredibly good.

The alternative snobs (if you'll excuse the term) love to complain that adventure movies are just shallow, commercial garbage. If that were true, making a perfect action movie wouldn't be such a challenge. However, reality shows us otherwise. To me, a perfect adventure film needs characters you actually want to root for, a thrilling plot, a cool villain, great style, and at least three genuinely funny moments. When I look back at most movies I watch, they usually only hit two or three of those marks (with rare exceptions like "Resident Evil," "Ribbit's Chronicle," or "Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever"). "The Incredibles" hits all five. 🙂 👍

The reason it took me so long to respond is that I've spent the entire day processing my impressions. The only other action movie in the last 18 months that truly impressed me was "Kill Bill" one. But while "Kill Bill" is more of a blast for a handful of cinephiles in a theater who "get" the Quentin Tarantino style, "The Incredibles" is something the whole family can actually enjoy. And that is freaking HARD to achieve.

I don't know; I have pretty low standards for cinema-as-entertainment, but this is easily the best thing I've seen in a theater in the past year.

and don't put it on the blog 🙄 because that's not the vibe.

The blog is reserved for two specific categories:
1) Stupid, bad movies that deserve my mockery.
2) Stupid movies that I find charmingly mindless.

"The Incredibles" automatically disqualifies itself from both. 😬

This movie is just pure fun, super exciting, genuinely smart, and—if I can be a bit of a critic here regarding the visuals—damn well made.

But what really hits home for me is how sincere it feels.
It avoids being some cynical, self-deprecating piece of garbage, which is honestly impressive because it could have easily turned out that way if it hadn't been in the hands of someone like Brad Bird.