So, Riley’s hit those tough teenage years—braces, restless nights, and the urge to sass her parents. Puberty’s got her self-confidence all tangled up, especially since she found out her best pals, Grace and Bree, are heading to a different high school after summer. But before all that stress hits full force, the three of them are off to a three-day hockey camp. Riley’s hoping to wiggle her way into a new group of friends so she doesn’t end up being a loner. The new crowd is an older girls’ hockey team who mostly think Riley is kinda awkward—except for their team captain, Viv. She’s cool and takes Riley under her wing.

Meanwhile, inside Riley’s head—where the emotions live (Joy, Anger, Sadness, Fear, and Disgust)—things get really interesting with newbies like Ennui, Envy, Embarrassment, and especially Anxiety showing up. Anxiety’s ready to cause chaos if Joy doesn’t keep things in check.

Inside Out set quite the bar with its brilliant peek into how our minds work as kids. Inside Out 2 brings another clever twist: it follows Riley growing up through those cringe-worthy teenage moments inspired by real-life experiences tied back to Pete Docter’s daughter—you know him as the director of the first movie.
“Inside Out 2” switches things up a bit. This time around, Meg LeFauve, who worked on the first film, and Dave Holstein handle the script. And Kelsey Mann, a longtime Pixar animator, tries his hand at directing for the first time. The cool thing is that kids who adored the original movie are probably teenagers now, kinda like how Harry Potter fans grew up with those movies.

This new film flips the script on our expectations from the first one. Instead of focusing on how emotions control us inside our heads—like little bossy characters taking charge—it explores how they work together as a team. Which makes sense ’cause when you’re a teenager your feelings are all over the place! You’re trying to figure out who you are and fit in with friends while feeling like you need to change everything about yourself.

“Inside Out 2” perfectly captures these shifts in growing up and keeps that connection we loved from before.
Inside Out 2 dives into that whirlwind of emotions teens go through. You know, feeling awkward and inadequate but covering it up with sarcasm to seem cool and confident? Yeah, that vibe. Instead of wrapping up by saying every emotion is okay like the first movie did, this one zeroes in on how anxiety can really mess things up if you let it take over.

It’s like there’s a little jab at the overly optimistic “always feel happy” thing going on too! This time around, it’s about balancing those cheerier vibes with real-life doubts—without losing hope in reaching your goals. Riley has to figure out how to handle all the internal drama without letting her feelings steer the ship completely. They’re valid for sure, but they’ve gotta sit shotgun while she makes decisions.

Mann’s direction isn’t as razzle-dazzle as Docter’s was before, but the script still works its magic by slowly building up emotions until you’re right there getting teary-eyed at the end—even parents who see their own kids’ growing pains reflected onscreen might feel a tug at their heartstrings. It’s kind of a bummer though; side characters like Ennui and Embarrassment don’t get much love story-wise (even though Deva Cassel as Ennui nailed it), considering they’re such big players in what makes-up teen life.
Hey, so there’s this movie that kind of missed the mark on being funny. You know how sometimes characters are set up to make you laugh but then don’t really deliver? That’s what happened here. Plus, there’s this character named Envy who’s supposed to be all about jealousy, but honestly, she doesn’t come across as envious at all. It’s like they forgot to make her actually envious! The whole thing just feels a little off target in those areas.