Written by: Brad Bird
Starring: Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Huckleberry Milner, Samuel L. Jackson
Rating: [3.5/5]
Based on the needs of the family, a dynamic gets built to decide if parents will both work or one will stay home to care for them. A dynamic that throughout history has typically meant the women stay home while the men work. Whenever this gets flipped over, it emanates some strangeness because of its rarity, and Incredibles 2 uses it as its foundation where Elastigirl gets her time in the spotlight.
Following a lack of appreciation for the contributions of superheros, the Superhero Relocation Program gets shut down. A brother and sister duo who run a telecommunications company decide they want to resurrect the brand of these heroes by sending them on missions, but as they begin they realize that the focus of this exercise should focus not on Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) but rather Elastigirl (Holly Hunter).
Working with this change of familial dynamic not only within its narrative but also in the structure of this film Incredibles 2 puts the spotlight completely on Helen. With the first The Incredibles the focus lies primarily on Mr. Incredible in his particular journey of a midlife crisis and trying to find meaning in his life. Elastigirl took a back seat in assuming the homemaker role in taking care of the children but now with the roles reversed we get the opportunity for her to show out her potential as well as setting up the classically comedic situation of a man having to take care of children.
These two storylines succeed in various levels where everything with Eliastigirl works quite well in showing what difference it makes for her to have this level of freedom that Mr. Incredible had all of this time. Thematically it resonates with the way women have moved to gaining more independence and not be beholden to the classic familial structures much like what Helen experienced in the first film. Seeing the full potential she has as Elastigirl and just living out this dream displays the very best the film has to offer.
On the other hand, we also have Mr. Incredible changing things up and staying home, where we have the classic trope of a man discovering the difficulty involved in completing all the domestic tasks typically placed on the shoulders of women. While a very dated trope to run with, it still has its humor given he needs to care for these super powered children of his that require a different level of attention. You deal with Violet (Sarah Vowell) and her teenage angst, but it has the added bug of her having powers that make the emotions a bit more difficult to manage. Quite the task set for him, but one that further makes us realize just how much Helen does effortlessly that demands appreciation.
Where the film does falter comes from the villain at the center of this tale called the Screenslaver, a villain that seeks to utilize our obsession with our phones and screens of all sizes to do as the name implies. This reveal of this villain comes as no surprise even in the slightest but plays into the larger concept of this film by looking at the way superheroes contribute versus the perception behind it. The way the media and others portray any event can make others see things in a different light, and how this gets interpreted serves as the whole thesis of the entire film. Even with its high ambitions, however, it never quite delivers in the way it should and has it feel quite underwhelming, especially, in comparison to what we saw with Syndrome in the first film.
Despite not reaching the heights of its predecessor, Incredibles 2 still has plenty to enjoy as it places our lead characters in a different circumstance and forces them to adapt to it. The film brings plenty of humor and action in what we can expect from a Brad Bird animated film. Standing in its way, unfortunately, was a lackluster villain that did not measure up to having Elastigirl out there for the first time in years get to show out and live her best superhero life. Nearly 15 years following the previous film, this feature proves a worthy sequel.
Films with Josh 
