It’s very hard to imagine a world where Pixar isn’t releasing a film every summer. Starting back in 1995, Pixar and Disney have been the standard in animated films successful both for their narratives and financially. As a matter of fact, since Dreamworks caught the world by storm with the release of Shrek back in the early 2000’s, Disney and Pixar have pretty much dominated the animated film genre. However, in 2004, Disney and Pixar stumbled upon a genre they were years away from dominating – the superhero genre. That film was The Incredibles, and to this day is still considered the greatest Fantastic Four film of all time.
The Incredibles tells the story of a world that has outlawed being a superhero. However, before we get there, Brad Bird sets the film up by looking at the importance of superheroes to society. What stands out from this flashback is a call back to the “golden age” of superheroes with an aesthetic that brings back memories of 1930’s and 1940’s Marvel and DC comics.
After a look back at the glory days, we look upon these mighty heroes who are now relegated to a life anonymity, unable to use their superpowers any more thanks individuals who took them to court for a neck injury while being saved from a train. While subtle, the message had an impact as this alone showed societies lack of appreciation for good deeds.
From there, the focus turns to Bob, also known as Mr. Incredible, along with his charming family. Bob married Helen, who at one time was known as Elastigirl. The marriage, which is seen in the flashbacks early on, works so well as both Bob and Helen have distinguishing personalities that the chemistry between Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter cannot be ignored. The two’s dynamic and wit make this lovely couple one of my favorite animated couples in film. Oh wait, they have kids too! Bob and Helen have three children, Jack-Jack, Dash, and Violet, with the two oldest harnessing their own power but because of the new laws are forbidden to use them.
What makes The Incredibles stand out even 15 years later?
It’s the originality of its story. Back in 2004, Brad Bird could have told us a cliche superhero story. Why? Because at that time, most cinephiles are programmed to the formulaic nature of superhero films. Instead, Bird not only gave us a superhero film but one that incorporated such depth about being a hero and a family man. The film also incorporates teenage nerves as Violet uses her invisibility powers to hide from a boy she is attracted to while also looking at the competitive nature of young boys, (trust me, I was and still am just as competitive) in Dash that he only wants to run track and be good at it.
In my most recent screening of the film to prepare for this review, I also came to the realization that Bob is indeed going through a mid-life crisis. Someone who remembers the glory days and decides to get back to it. Similar to Michael Jordan’s run with the Washington Wizards, a mid-life crisis may not always have the best outcome, but in Mr. Incredible’s case, this one turned out quite well.
While The Incredibles is full of original concepts and story, it is still able to capture the magic of Pixar that helped make it one of the best studios around today. At the time, The Incredibles was Pixar’s most mature film as it looked at real human emotions while invoking Pixar’s fun. Despite films like Wall-E, Up, and Inside Out looking at mature, human concepts, The Incredibles still remains one of the top 3 best Pixar films of all time.
