The IncrediblesHeroism is a part of you that just can't be turned off like a switch. The Incredibles is an animated superhero movie about a suburban family forced to conceal their super powers in the wake of a government-imposed sanction. The patriarch of the Parr family, Bob (a.k.a. Mr. Incredible), longs for the glory days displayed in the first act of the film, heroics ranging from stopping absurd bank-robbing villains like "Bomb Voyage" to saving a kitten from a tree for an old lady. Tired of his feelings of helplessness in a desk job for an insurance company, he leaps at the chance to exercise his now-flabby muscles when solicited by a secret group, subsequently confronted with a phantom from his past he couldn't have anticipated.
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Directed by Brad Bird--whose talents contributed to making his preceding film, The Iron Giant, such a memorable classic--The Incredibles is a smart and funny family film, with high-quality, dynamic computer-generated animation which has made Pixar the leader in the field. Many familiar Disney tropes are present in The Incredibles, from stylistic ones like the principles of animation pioneered by Walt Disney (and Disney's "Nine Old Men"), to the presence of recognizable actors voicing the characters. Craig T. Nelson voices Mr. Incredible, while Holly Hunter voices his wife, Helen (formerly Elastigirl), for example. Although the super couple of Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl have to go into the equivalent of a witness relocation program following the governmental imposition that superheroes operate in an extralegal capacity, it is revealed that their children also possess superpowers. The eldest daughter, Violet, has the ability to turn invisible (an ironic power for a shy teenage girl), while Dashiell Robert "Dash" Parr is endowed with super speed. When circumstances force the family to intervene to stop the maniacal schemes of the villainous Syndrome (voiced with snarky aplomb by Jason Lee), the four become a force to be reckoned with. In fact, the dynamic of the Parr family in The Incredibles shares much in common with Marvel Comics' own "Fantastic Four" superheroic family series; a direct nod to this is found at the end of the film with the emergence of "The Underminer". The premise that superheroes must not actively perform their heroics lest they are forced to reveal their identities to the world at large is a concept which also predates Marvel Comics' own "Civil War" story arc by a couple of years. The great irony about superheroes forced to give up their crusade publicly is that as it is established that superheroes possess alter egos, this forces them to live the lives of their milquetoast counterparts as the reality instead of the "mask" of normalcy it was intended to be. It's clear that Bob has the most difficult time adjusting to this lifestyle, always looking for some kind of excuse to let loose with his powers which have since grown a bit rusty, determined to help those in need even at the risk of revealing himself to the world. It is this kind of internal struggle which is what makes him a target by the secretive and seductive Mirage for their clandestine operation.
Bob's has been scolded by Helen before for doing heroics, who has desperately tried to ensure that her family can grow up in a stable environment, which Bob's actions have inadvertently threatened in the past. So when Bob loses his job and discovers the opportunity to get excited about being Mr. Incredible again, he is afraid to disclose this to his wife, leading to yet another kind of secret life for the family man. In essence, Bob's dilemma in The Incredibles is like a metaphor for infidelity and is surprisingly played with the same beats throughout. Bob secretly reviews his invitation by Mirage to the tropical getaway island in the dark of his den. After he gets a taste for what he has been missing, he perks up a lot at home, gets back into shape, dresses better, yet continues to keep up the facade that he is going off on "business trips" to Helen. Although The Incredibles doesn't deal directly with the horrors of a family destroyed by infidelity--nor does it really approach this in its altogether jovial tone--it does acknowledge that these kinds of deceptions are visible to members of a family. Another trope of the superhero genre explored in The Incredibles has to do with how superheroes sometimes tend to make their own worst enemies. In the case of Mr. Incredible, this comes in the form of Syndrome, who once wanted to be Mr. Incredible's obsequious sidekick, the self-proclaimed "Incrediboy". But for all his enthusiasm, when Mr. Incredible deters the boy from heroics, the spurned lad instead turns his talents over to weapons development, and ultimately a plot to stage an invasion and portray himself as the supreme hero. Syndrome has comfortably fallen into the role of a super-villain, complete with an evil, volcanic island headquarters, copious amounts of exaggerated and complicated technology, and an obsessive desire for recognition from his former idol emerging in his nemesis complex. It is little coincidence that Syndrome's great weapon is one which is designed to learn from the powers of the superheroes sacrificed upon its proverbial altar, as Syndrome is constantly looking to prove himself to Mr. Incredible by showing him just how much he can outpace him and all his forerunners. The Incredibles was a massive success in the theaters, well-received by critics, and a turning point for Pixar and its style of filmmaking as a result of the inclusion of a talented filmmaker like Brad Bird--itself a superheroic team up, and like a family, more than the sum of its parts.
Recommended for: Fans of a colorful, funny, and even thought-provoking animated film about the anxieties of balancing responsibilities with passion, and about how knowing how to own them is the definition of heroism. The Incredibles is a thoroughly entertaining family film for nearly all ages, and as cliche as it sounds, genuinely enjoyable for adults and kids both.
Bob's has been scolded by Helen before for doing heroics, who has desperately tried to ensure that her family can grow up in a stable environment, which Bob's actions have inadvertently threatened in the past. So when Bob loses his job and discovers the opportunity to get excited about being Mr. Incredible again, he is afraid to disclose this to his wife, leading to yet another kind of secret life for the family man. In essence, Bob's dilemma in The Incredibles is like a metaphor for infidelity and is surprisingly played with the same beats throughout. Bob secretly reviews his invitation by Mirage to the tropical getaway island in the dark of his den. After he gets a taste for what he has been missing, he perks up a lot at home, gets back into shape, dresses better, yet continues to keep up the facade that he is going off on "business trips" to Helen. Although The Incredibles doesn't deal directly with the horrors of a family destroyed by infidelity--nor does it really approach this in its altogether jovial tone--it does acknowledge that these kinds of deceptions are visible to members of a family. Another trope of the superhero genre explored in The Incredibles has to do with how superheroes sometimes tend to make their own worst enemies. In the case of Mr. Incredible, this comes in the form of Syndrome, who once wanted to be Mr. Incredible's obsequious sidekick, the self-proclaimed "Incrediboy". But for all his enthusiasm, when Mr. Incredible deters the boy from heroics, the spurned lad instead turns his talents over to weapons development, and ultimately a plot to stage an invasion and portray himself as the supreme hero. Syndrome has comfortably fallen into the role of a super-villain, complete with an evil, volcanic island headquarters, copious amounts of exaggerated and complicated technology, and an obsessive desire for recognition from his former idol emerging in his nemesis complex. It is little coincidence that Syndrome's great weapon is one which is designed to learn from the powers of the superheroes sacrificed upon its proverbial altar, as Syndrome is constantly looking to prove himself to Mr. Incredible by showing him just how much he can outpace him and all his forerunners. The Incredibles was a massive success in the theaters, well-received by critics, and a turning point for Pixar and its style of filmmaking as a result of the inclusion of a talented filmmaker like Brad Bird--itself a superheroic team up, and like a family, more than the sum of its parts.
Recommended for: Fans of a colorful, funny, and even thought-provoking animated film about the anxieties of balancing responsibilities with passion, and about how knowing how to own them is the definition of heroism. The Incredibles is a thoroughly entertaining family film for nearly all ages, and as cliche as it sounds, genuinely enjoyable for adults and kids both.