Spring Break
Disney, Pixar do 'Incredible' job
Tom Gaffey
Issue date: 3/17/05 Section: Focus
Disney and Pixar seem immune to failure. In their most recent collaborative release on DVD, "The Incredibles," Disney and Pixar continue to prove they can make films that rise high above most studio mediocrity, even if they can't soar to any height of greatness.
It's not fish, bugs or toys in this computer-animated tale, but superheroes.
The film's premise begins like a typical superhero saga - there are special people who fight crime but keep normal lives holding onto their precious secret identites. Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) is the world's strongest man of sorts, and after saving children and a trainload of citizens, he rushes to a wedding chapel to marry his fiancée Helen Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) - who stretches her limbs to seemingly endless lengths.
Everything is going well for the superheroes until Mr. Incredible is sued for saving a suicidal man's life. Soon all superheroes are getting sued, and the government puts them all in hiding, where they remain for 15 years living normal lives.
"The Incredibles" isn't what the viewer expects it to be - it is not simply a superhero saga, but the story of a family struggling to fit in. Mr. Incredible works at an insurance company, barely fits in his cubical and stays depressed, the colors gray and pastel, until accepting a top secret job on a top secret island.
It's always exhilarating to see a youth-geared film that takes risks. Seeing the family go through depression, conflict and anger is humanity Disney is often afraid of.
Apart from the risks, the colors, pace and story rocket launch "The Incredibles" into a highly entertaining two hours that any kid can enjoy - a film whose story may entice the most avid and critical comic book collectors.
Animated films hit and miss when it comes to comedy, and it seems to be the essential element to getting broad crowds in theaters ("Shrek" and "Finding Nemo" being examples of hysterical successes). For the most part, "The Incredibles" isn't a comedy, but an adventure and drama, which is both annoying and entertaining. The laughs in the film do eventually come, and are evoked from the insane diva stylist to superheroes, Edna 'E' Mode (the voice of whom is done by writer/director Brad Bird). His dramatic antics and uppity manner provide laughs in otherwise serious territory. Samuel L. Jackson plays Frozone, who can freeze moisture, and provides the remainder of the film's comic relief.
It's not fish, bugs or toys in this computer-animated tale, but superheroes.
The film's premise begins like a typical superhero saga - there are special people who fight crime but keep normal lives holding onto their precious secret identites. Mr. Incredible (Craig T. Nelson) is the world's strongest man of sorts, and after saving children and a trainload of citizens, he rushes to a wedding chapel to marry his fiancée Helen Elastigirl (Holly Hunter) - who stretches her limbs to seemingly endless lengths.
Everything is going well for the superheroes until Mr. Incredible is sued for saving a suicidal man's life. Soon all superheroes are getting sued, and the government puts them all in hiding, where they remain for 15 years living normal lives.
"The Incredibles" isn't what the viewer expects it to be - it is not simply a superhero saga, but the story of a family struggling to fit in. Mr. Incredible works at an insurance company, barely fits in his cubical and stays depressed, the colors gray and pastel, until accepting a top secret job on a top secret island.
It's always exhilarating to see a youth-geared film that takes risks. Seeing the family go through depression, conflict and anger is humanity Disney is often afraid of.
Apart from the risks, the colors, pace and story rocket launch "The Incredibles" into a highly entertaining two hours that any kid can enjoy - a film whose story may entice the most avid and critical comic book collectors.
Animated films hit and miss when it comes to comedy, and it seems to be the essential element to getting broad crowds in theaters ("Shrek" and "Finding Nemo" being examples of hysterical successes). For the most part, "The Incredibles" isn't a comedy, but an adventure and drama, which is both annoying and entertaining. The laughs in the film do eventually come, and are evoked from the insane diva stylist to superheroes, Edna 'E' Mode (the voice of whom is done by writer/director Brad Bird). His dramatic antics and uppity manner provide laughs in otherwise serious territory. Samuel L. Jackson plays Frozone, who can freeze moisture, and provides the remainder of the film's comic relief.