Over the past years Disney Pixar has kept the audience hooked with its movies. I am one of those audiences.
Ratatouille made me realize that cooking can be a passion and elevated to art. Wreck–it Ralph revisited the bygone era of arcade gaming – pixelated heroes and boss stages. Up wrenched my gut with its story of “ever after???, taking off from where most love-stories end.
I dare say, Inside Out is a phenomenal achievement of Disney Pixar as far as the story is concerned.
How do you write about something that you absolutely come to love, without spoiling the surprise? I shall try not to tell the story for those who are yet to watch it.
Disney Pixar follows a trend of weaving concepts around one simple line. That is where the core intention of the entire movie lies, the root of the story.
“I don’t want to survive, I want to live.??? – Wall-E
“Who cooks the Ratatouille? I demand to know!??? – Ratatouille
I did not could not find a singular source of inspiration for this movie! How could I? It is built around the realm which humanity is yet to understand – the human psyche.
Where the concept of personifying the core human emotions is in itself brilliant, the movie is a well-researched presentation of how the psyche is built. You literally grow up with Riley; the child whose core emotions are the major characters. You make memories with her, venture into her imaginary land, meet her imaginary friend, her imaginary boyfriend, and ride in her train of thoughts.
Irrespective of your gender; you are wired either male or female. It was not surprising to assume the gender of her parent’s core emotions. However, it was interesting to notice that Riley’s core emotions belonged to both genders. What were the writers thinking? I am not exactly sure.
The astounding thing about Inside Out is the way it gives shape and colors to the most abstract of ideas and then weaves a story around it; not just about Riley or how things change as she grows up, but a parallel and inter-connected network of her ‘head-quarters’ controlled by these personified emotions. Where it is difficult to fully grasp the concepts of terms like subconscious mind and deja-vu, Inside Out portrays how deeply rooted our fears are with the subconscious mind and how they affect other emotions.
Inside Out also emphasizes on the importance of personality building at a young age and how crucial it is. Growing up is learning, and in that learning, the personality of the child begins to take shape. These are the floating islands on one end of the subconscious chasm, with the emotions nestled on the other side. (Spoiler Alert! There is indeed a “monkey personality??? island in her head. “बालक वानर समान??? is universal).
Plunging into the graphics; there isn’t anything Life of Pi about it. The execution of animation was smooth (as always), the colors carefully chosen to depict emotions. “Feeling blue??? is not a “Joy??? thing.
There has never been any Disney Pixar movie that goes without a message. Inside Out would help you appreciate your core emotions equally. “Sadness??? is as good as “Joy??? and equally important. It is okay to have “Anger??? or “Fear??? or “Disgust??? dictate your current behavior. Some of the best memories are made when they fight for control. “Mixed emotions???, one can say and the animators have actually portrayed the memory associated to it like a dazzling marble, which we all loved as kids.
Inside Out in the most succinct way, dissolved the line between tangible and intangible. This movie is for everybody. I have never seen a theater where people are still glued to their seats when the end credits begin to roll. Indians are too busy for that – but not with this one.
When the movie ended, people still wanted more from it. Do watch Inside Out when it debuts on TV. The next time you hear the “little voice in your head???, you would know what’s inside out!
