‘Inside Out 2’ Makes Sense of Being a Teenager By Using Heart, Humor, and Lots of Color

June 12, 2024June 13, 2024 Michael Lee

Inside Out 2′s themes can best be encapsulated by its use of The Linda Lindas’ hit song, “Growing Up.” The song is a perfect anthem for teenagers trying to make sense of a world that’s messy and full of uncertainty, and how friendships and outlets help get through those struggles of finding your identity, fitting in, and the pressures of meeting self-imposed expectations.

Animation, Movies, Trailers

Final Trailer for ‘Inside Out 2’ Hits You in All the Feels

June 4, 2024June 12, 2024 Michael Lee

With Inside Out 2 just 10 days from its theatrical release, Disney and Pixar have released a final trailer for the highly anticipated sequel that takes a look at the inside of the mind of mind of newly minted teenager Riley just as Headquarters undergoes a sudden demolition to make room for something entirely unexpected: new Emotions.

Animation, Movies

Cinematographer Adam Habib on the Cinematic Inspirations Behind ‘Inside Out 2’

May 14, 2024May 14, 2024 Michael Lee

If Pixar’s Inside Out captured the adolescent experience of processing a life-changing cross country move, then Inside Out 2 promises to show audiences “what it means to be young and growing up” and how more complex emotions navigate the complications of life.

Animation, Movies1 Comment

‘Inside Out 2’ Footage Reaction: Pixar Gets in Touch With New Emotions

April 16, 2024April 16, 2024 Michael Lee

Pixar’s Inside Out was an opportunity for the animation studio to explore uncharted territory. The human mind. It was a playful yet informative character study on emotions like Joy, Sadness, Disgust, Anger and Fear. The critical and commercially successful film helped audiences embrace their emotions while also normalizing discarded ones. Nine years later, Inside Out 2, revisits the inside of Riley’s mind and sees Joy and the gang making room for four new emotions: Anxiety, Envy, Embarrassment, and Ennui.

Animation, Movies, Trailers

Joy and Friends Get Bottled Up by New Emotions in ‘Inside Out 2’ Trailer

March 7, 2024March 8, 2024 Michael Lee

Disney and Pixar has released the newest trailer for Inside Out 2. The highly anticipated sequel finds Riley’s first emotions Joy (Amy Poehler), Anger (Lewis Black), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Fear (Tony Hale), and Disgust (Liza Lapira) navigating the life of being a teenager whose life was turned upside down then her parents decided to move from Minnesota to sunny California.

Animation, Movies

‘Inside Out 2’ Trailer Introduces Us to the New Anxiety Voice in Riley’s Head

November 9, 2023November 9, 2023 Michael Lee

Inside Out was just one of those films that let everyone know that it is okay to feel your emotion. Pete Docter’s film was a joyous and sometimes somber celebration of expressing your emotions freely and without judgment. So, when Bing Bong faded away and was never to be remembered ever again, we all cried. Then we all cheered when Joy discovered that every emotion has its place. And it seems fitting that Inside Out 2′s first trailer introduce us to Anxiety, which is something that affects many to this very day. One thing is for sure, things are about to get very strange.

Movies, Reviews, Streaming

Netflix’s ‘Moxie’ Should Have Been a TV Series

March 9, 2021May 15, 2021 Laura Sirikul

There is nothing wrong with a good ole’ fashion teen feminism story. It seems the appropriate time to show off the power of angry women at a time when men, who behave badly, still seem to get away with it, especially one targeted towards teenagers. Directed by Amy Poehler, who is known for her funny, tough characters, Moxie is a cute story about girl power that’s been done before but, this time, written to fit this generation’s wokeness.

Based on the 2015 YA book of the same name by Jennifer Mathieu, Moxie follows a shy and very sheltered high school junior named Vivian (Hadley Robinson) who lays low to avoid any attention. She has lived in the shadows of high school with her childhood best friend Claudia (Lauren Tsai of Terrace House fame). It’s not until the arrival of a new student, Lucy (Alycia Pascual-Peña) who quickly becomes a target for speaking up against popular jock, Mitchell (Patrick Schwarzenegger), that Vivian realizes how sexist her school is. Inspired by her mother’s (Poehler) teenage rebellion stage and a Bikini Kill song her mother used to play for her, Vivian creates her own anonymous feminist zine — ‘Moxie’ — calling out the toxic behavior from classmates and the school, led by Principal Shelly (Marcia Gay Harden). The zine is a hit among the girls in school sparking a Moxie Club created to topple the patriarchy — or at least in the school.

Animation, Movies6 Comments

Inside Out is Not for Kids, and That’s Exactly Why Your Kids Should See It

June 25, 2015June 25, 2015 Guest N.O.C.

by Mayka Mei | Originally posted at The Maykazine

Last week I cried three times. First, the shooting at Emanuel AME Church. Then when I watched Inside Out. Then my friends got married. Adult life is confusing.

Each instance occurred within the span of three days, and though each event has warranted its own inner reflection and the outer two are deserving of their own longwinded meanderings, right now I want to write about the middle one, the kids’ movie. (I’ve also written about the AME shooting. Here are my raw thoughts from the morning after that god-awful Wednesday night.)

Continue reading “Inside Out is Not for Kids, and That’s Exactly Why Your Kids Should See It”