Two as one

When The Incredibles first hit theaters in 2004, it earned nearly universal praise not only for its excellent animation but also for the way it snuck provocative themes into a thoroughly entertaining storyline. Fourteen years later, the Incredibles are back and, once again, they’re sure to spark the kind of analysis that will make non-movie-obsessed people say, “We’re talking about a kids’ movie, right?”

Not much has changed for the Parrs since we last left them, but as their new adventure progresses it further explores some of the ideological questions the first film introduced. Superheroes are still illegal mostly because, as one character quips, “Politicians don’t understand people who do good simply because it’s right. It makes them nervous.” This inherent suspicion is exacerbated by a media that manipulates video to paint supers in a negative light.

So yes, our beloved Bob and Helen (once again wonderfully voiced by Craig T. Nelson and Holly Hunter) are victims of fake news. How’s that for relevant?

Fortunately, just as they’re about to be homeless, the Parrs cross paths with Winston Deavor, a tech billionaire with a PR plan to bring superheroes back into the public’s good graces. In any other animated movie, this slick-talking capitalist (voiced by Better Call Saul’s Bob Odenkirk) would be the obvious villain. But writer/director Brad Bird is far too creative for such a cliché. Instead, the first hint of conflict comes because Winston wants Helen, not Bob, to be the face of the pro-superhero lobby.

A lot of critics are hailing this so-called gender swap as a message of female empowerment in the age of #MeToo. But look closer and you’ll see Bird doing something far more interesting. Bob is understandably envious, but he’s no backward, begrudging chauvinist. A loving dad, determined to step up for his wife, his Mr. Mom fumbles provide the movie’s biggest laughs. (Imagine not only trying to take care of a cranky, high-energy toddler, but a cranky high-energy toddler with superpowers.)

Meanwhile, as Helen dives into her high-profile role, Winston’s sister makes comparisons between Helen and Bob that subtly disparage the latter. Helen is flattered to be thought so capable and begins to wonder if maybe the entire superhero movement would have been better off if she’d always been its leader.

As the plot speeds along full of distracting action and fun, this division with her husband actually leaves Helen open to attacks. So this isn’t a movie about female empowerment so much as family empowerment. Helen is only really able to put up a fight against villain Screenslaver when joined by her other half and the two become a much stronger one.

As the best movie villains do, the marvelously named Screenslaver makes some credible arguments. His first, that people substitute virtual entertainment for real experience, could be Bird’s sly commentary on his own industry. His second, however, is even more interesting—that superheroes teach people to be dependent on someone else to rescue them rather than fend for themselves.

Putting this extreme view in the mouth of an antagonist feels like Bird’s way of answering charges that he’s a closet libertarian. In 2015 he tweeted, “I’ve always thought the Ayn Rand comparison lazy and inaccurate at best.” And indeed, if the first Incredibles centered on how the fairness movement hamstrings individuals from using their talents, Incredibles 2 offers a pointed rebuke to Atlas Shrugged. It contends, like 1 Peter 4, that the highest purpose for our gifts is to serve others.

If there’s a drawback to all of this heady content, it’s that it’s a lot to cram into an all-ages movie. The younger children in my press screening were fairly squirmy before the almost two hours were up. That, along with a few uses of the kind of four-letter words that apparently pass PG muster, could make some parents flinch. For this cultural-analysis-loving adult, however, Pixar has created a worthy sequel to the Incredibles’ story.