A sequel to one of Pixar’s best films gives us all the right feels this week, as does David E. Kelley’s definitive version of a Scott Turow bestseller.
They top our lists of what to see and watch this week, along with a strange yet beautiful drama about death, a killer killer shark thriller and a bracing directorial debut from actor and screenwriter Jake Allyn.
Here’s our roundup.
“Inside Out 2”: Sequels often get too amped, too determined to rival anything and everything the first film accomplished and then some. Not so “Inside Out 2,” Pixar’s subtle and brilliant follow-up to the 2015 animated classic about a sweet, smart girl named Riley who had a heckuva time adjusting to a new life in San Francisco and the emotions that kept cropping up inside of her. Pete Docter’s original film struck an emotional chord with many viewers, but Kelsey Mann’s follow-up is even more special — bestowing a profound, comforting message to generations that it really is OK to embrace feeling anxious, happy, sad, joyful, even bored and to also be far, far, far from perfect. It’s a realistic, nuanced message rarely presented in a family-friendly way and without wielding a heavy hand. The film is often hilarious (especially a visit to a vault of secrets) but with sophistication — reflected in the writing, the animation, the voice cast and the direction.
In “Inside Out 2,” a now-13-year-old Riley leaps into the hot mess of teendom. Her body’s changing and she’s smelly, and — even worse — she’s saddled with a sudden outbreak of pimples. Then comes the heartbreaking news that her besties are moving away to a different school. The announcement gets delivered while they’re heading to a summer hockey camp and proves to be the emotional game-changer for Riley as a slew of new emotions rush in to take over — Anxiety (Maya Hawke), Envy (Ayo Edebiri), Embarrassment (Paul Walter Hauser), Ennui (Adèle Exarchopoulos), and Nostalgia (June Squibb).
Their arrival is intrusive and disruptive and doesn’t sit so well with the already established emotions Joy (Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Tony Hale) and Disgust (Liza Lapira) — all of whom get cast out while Maya’s anxiety takes over.
Pixar’s animation team makes us feel as if we’re experiencing every colliding emotion that Riley is dealing with, from her breaking into a sweat on the hockey rink and wherever she’s fearful, to a realistic panic attack. Riley’s interior world expands as well and grows more complex in accordance with who Riley is becoming.
“Inside Out 2” is indeed a creative and emotional triumph for Pixar, and it’s not only one of the best movies of the year, it’s one of the best animated films ever made. And be sure to stay through the end credits. Details: 4 stars out of 4; in theaters June 14.
“Presumed Innocent”: David E. Kelley’s been prolific of late. But not all the veteran TV showrunners’ recent works (Netflix’s “A Man in Full,” ABC’s “Big Sky”) compare favorably to his iconic earlier series — “Ally McBeal” and “The Practice.” Until now. Kelley’s and J.J. Abram’s expert contemporization of lawyer-turned-novelist Scott Turow’s courtroom classic rates as one of his all-time highs, a gripping white-knuckler that updates and expands upon Turow’s work and Alan J. Pakula’s somber 1990 film adaptation starring Harrison Ford.
Told in eight bingeable episodes (Apple TV+ didn’t make its final episode available to press — shame on them), Kellley’s version hooks us and keeps us entertained throughout as it hurtles toward the murder trial of hotshot and arrogant Chicago attorney/family man Rusty Sabich (Jake Gyllenhaal, going full Emmy-worthy tilt in a duplicitous role).
He’s an upset-the-applecart legal eagle with many enemies and stands accused of savagely killing his colleague/mistress Carolyn Polhemus (Renate Reinsve). The prosecution team (O-T Fagbenle and Peter Sarsgaard, Gyllenhaal’s brother-in-law) seize this as opportunity for payback while Rusty’s worn-down wife Barbara (an exceptional Ruth Negga) and their teenaged children Jaden (Chase Infiniti) and Kyle (Kingston Rumi Southwick) deal with the ensuing media circus. You’ll get sucked in from the start, and will continually waffle over Rusty’s innocence and the list of potential suspects. “Presumed Innocent” makes a strong case that Kelley needs to stick to making legal thrillers. It’s what he excels at. Details: 3½ stars; two episodes drop June 12 with one episode dropping every Wednesday after.
“Tuesday”: Death arrives at the door, and even the window, of the home of anxious mother Zora (Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and her terminally ill daughter Tuesday (Lola Petticrew). But the Grim Reaper isn’t your run-of-the-mill harbinger here, but assumes the unconventional guise of a giant, shapeshifting macaw (voiced with gravelly, deep-in-the-chest distinction by Arinzé Kene). In director/screenwriter Daina Oniunas-Pusić’s unusually beautiful wise and weird heartbreaker of a debut, that bird won’t shut up since he’s taken a shine to the ready-to-accept her death Tuesday. Magical realism obviously perseveres over traditional storytelling, ensuring that Oniunas-Pusić’s vision isn’t for all, especially movie fans raised on a meat-and-potatoes cinematic diet. But those willing to go there, “Tuesday” offers numerous rewards, including two amazing lead performances and a thoughtful discourse on acceptance of our mortality. Details: 3½ stars; in theaters June 14.
“Firebrand”: Director Karim Aïnouz’s slow-moving epic revisits atrocities perpetrated by 16th-century royalty and messes around with history to fashion its intriguing, imperfect depiction of Katherine Parr’s (Alicia Vikander) married life spent with cruel brute King Henry VIII (Jude Law). Told by a well-chosen narrator, “Firebrand” throws many injustices at the smart Katherine as her husband doles out death and prison sentences to his dissenters and anyone with the audacity to question tradition. When word seeps out that Katherine visited with a critic of Henry and the status-quo, her life turns more hellish. “Firebrand” is a moderately successful revision of history hindered by a curiously subdued performance from Vikander. A bellowing, abrasive Law (scenes with him lashing out over a hideously infected leg will make you squirm) elevates the film. Details: 2½ stars; in theaters June 14.
“Under Paris”: Too many lame, utterly forgettable shark thrillers get churned out on a yearly basis (“Meg” and its dumb-beyond-belief sequel are just two examples). But those of us addicted to these “Jaws” rip-offs still watch them at our own peril. Netflix’s French shark thriller directed by Xavier Gens swims in better waters — realizing it has a silly story to tell (a shark feeding on plastic goes rogue and sets up its chomp shop in the Seine) and then goes all out on delivering those “Jaws” goods we’ve been craving — panic, attacks, great and questionable special effects, and even a clueless, opportunistic mayor who refuses to call off a big event. Add in two impossibly beautiful leads — “The Artist’s” Bérénice Bejo as marine researcher Sophia who’s bonded to a shark that killed her hubby, and “Mayhem’s” Nassim Lyes as a cop who doesn’t think Sophia’s bonkers for believing a shark is lurking down in the catacombs — and you have a guilty pleasure that delivers on its premise and promise, and even leaves you hankering for a sequel. Details: 3 stars; available now on Netflix.
“Ride”: Multi-talented actor Jake Allyn’s impressive directorial debut finds two of the ‘80s most recognizable stars – C. Thomas Howell and Annabeth Gish – riding tall in the saddle. The duo are terrific as parents of a cancer-stricken daughter who is in dire need of a new therapeutic regimen that could save her life, but costs too much. When the couple’s estranged, recovering addict son (Allyn) gets released from prison after a horrific accident and resumes his bull riding career along with his drug taking, a plan starts to germinate between father and son. But that relatively simple plan in a battered-down Texas town rendered so realistically you can almost catch a whiff of the rawhide goes haywire, with mom – the town’s sheriff – potentially catching wind of it. Allyn’s ambitious, tough drama serves up uncompromising Texas grit in every scene, and as actor, co-writer and director (he even co-produces), he keeps us riveted on all fronts for nearly two hours. Allyn’s got a great filmmaking career ahead of him. Details: 3 stars; in select theaters and on Demand June 14.
“Ultraman: Rising”: Inspired by the 1966 cult-classic Japanese series, Netflix’s family-oriented animated feature unveils a new Ultraman – an egotistical hunk of a baseball star named Ken Sato (Christopher Sean, voicing the role well). The single-for-a-reason guy isn’t willing to get as emotionally invested as his dad did in that saving-Japan role by taking on kaiju in his homeland. But he does become emotionally involved and sleep deprived once he becomes the de-facto parent for an orphaned 35-foot-tall baby kaiju that’s extra needy and loud. Director Shannon Tindle and co-director John Aoshima’s feature needs to pick up its pace and not bang the drums so loudly its message about the importance of family. We get it already. Another disappointment is how the story swings more to the heartfelt than action-packed. An equal mix of the two – such as what Netflix’s animated “Jurassic World: Chaos Theory” did – would have made the two hour running time breeze along faster. Given how the film ends, it seems like a sequel might be already in the works. Maybe they’ll get it right the next time. Details: 2 stars; drops June 14 on Netflix.
“The Grab”: As suspenseful as it is demanding and damning, Gabriela Cowperthwaite’s gripper issues a wake-up call to the global community and also offers testimony on why we need investigative journalism. Expect to put those brain cells to hard work while following along with tenacious reporter Nathan Halverson at the Emeryville-based nonprofit The Center for Investigative Reporting where journalists uncover shocking well-disguised campaigns by countries and dubious organizations to snatch land, water, food and and other precious resources from the unsuspecting. The “Grab” is indeed a grabber, and puts on the front burner an important, spilling way over the place issue that’s been on the back burner for too long. Details: 3½ stars, opens June 14 at the Opera Plaza Cinemas in San Francisco with Halverson and others from the reporting team appearing after the 7 p.m. screening.
Contact Randy Myers at soitsrandy@gmail.com.
