Pixar does it again, but this time, with superheroes.

Pixar's first full-length feature was Toy Story, and I left the theater completely awed. The Incredibles is a few steps behind that first amazing film, but only a few.

The basic plot is that the court of public opinion has turned against superheroes and they are forced to go into hiding. Mr. Incredible and his family must fit into normal society and try to make it living only as their secret identities. Mr. Incredible, however, is not content to sit by and file insurance claims 40 hours a week, and that's where it gets interesting. Like a few other great films (Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer and The Wall both come to mind), there are some great anti-conformism themes in this movie.

Some classic superhero problems are explored in The Incredibles as well, including the problems of capes, secret identities, and super-powered beings living among normals (mirrored in more adult fare such as The Dark Knight Returns, Watchmen, and Kingdom Come).

The Incredibles was thoroughly enjoyable and the first comic-related film I was able to watch with my daughter (she was 3 years old at the time, and this was probably the first PG film we let her see; it also appears to be Pixar's first foray away from the G rating).

			See it if you like comics or if you like movies. Don't see it the first time with a small child; you'll get much more out of it if you bring them along during your second viewing.

© 2006 Jim Manchester