The highest grossing film of 2024, Inside Out 2 has become a famous and meaningful animated movie for children and adults alike. Join Lokesh and Aditi as they dive into in-depth analyses of the various scenes and give their various takes on the movie!
L: Welcome everyone to this episode of Journsplit! This is Lokesh!
A: And this is Aditi!
L: And we present the last episode of Journsplit that the both of us will produce!
A: As we graduate, we hope the legacy of Journsplit will live on!
L: And with that, let’s move on to the movie. Today we’ll be covering Inside Out 2! Warning, there are spoilers ahead, so if you havent caught the movie, do it before listening in! So now let’s dive into a short tldw of the film!
A: “Inside Out 2” follows Riley as she navigates the complex emotions of her teenage years. As she enters high school, new emotions like Anxiety, Embarrassment, and Envy join the original emotions of Joy, Sadness, Anger, Fear, and Disgust in Headquarters. Riley faces challenges such as making new friends, dealing with peer pressure, and figuring out her identity, leading to internal conflicts between her emotions.
L: The new emotions introduce a level of complexity and chaos, prompting the original emotions to learn how to work with them and help Riley adapt to her changing world. Anxiety also uhhhhh… wreaks a lot of havoc in Riley’s head. Ultimately, the film highlights the importance of embracing a wide range of emotions for personal growth and resilience, and not letting negative emotions control you.
A: Ok now that we’re done with that, I’ve been dying to say this! I might sound like a nerd but one fun thing that I always notice about Pixar movies is the callouts to other Pixar productions! These easter eggs constantly keep me on a lookout for fun connections to my favourite characters!
L: Omg! Whats can you remember from the top of your head?
A: So, theres the iconic Pizza Planet truck that appears in a scene where Riley’s family drives through a busy city street. This easter egg is a recurring one in almost all Pixar films. I also remember in a scene set in Riley’s classroom, a photo of Darla, the niece from “Finding Nemo,” appears on a bulletin board, referencing her infamous role in the aquarium scenes.
L: What the sigma! Thats so cool! Ooooh I just thought of a few! In Riley’s room, a cowboy hat resembling Jessie’s hat from “Toy Story 2” and also worn by Boo in “Monsters, Inc.” is visible hanging on a coat rack. Also, during a memory recall sequence, a toy model of Mr. Incredible’s car can be seen on a shelf in the background.
A: In a flashback to Riley’s childhood, a boot with a small plant in it, similar to the one WALL-E finds and treasures in “WALL-E,” is spotted among her toys. Remember to check out our previous episode on WALLE!!! Riley’s bedroom also includes several teddy bears, a reference to the three bear triplets from “Brave,” who are Merida’s brothers turned into bears.
L: A Lightning McQueen toy car is also visible on the floor of Riley’s room, maintaining continuity with previous Pixar films where this toy appears. Oh and my favourite! A poster for 4*Town, the fictional boy band from “Turning Red,” is displayed in Riley’s friend’s room, connecting the two films through a shared pop culture reference.
A: Ok, 1 thing i need to do is call out Joy’s toxic positivity! Like what is she doing that’s minus 1000 aura bruh…
L: I know right. She’s so not skibidi. One thing i noticed is that she can’t accept change. As Riley enters her teenage years, her emotional needs become more complex, and new emotions like Anxiety, Envy, and Embarrassment emerge. Joy initially struggles to accept these changes, viewing them as threats to Riley’s happiness. Joy tries to maintain a facade of constant joy and optimism despite the clear need for a broader emotional range.
A: And another thing that’s been triggering me since the first movie is that Joy often dismisses the concerns and contributions of other emotions. For example, when Anxiety tries to warn Riley about potential dangers in her social life or school, Joy may downplay these warnings in an attempt to keep the mood light. Joy always puts down sadness too (and though sometimes this is for good cause, sadness does have a role and is not in the wrong most of the time).
L: Joy’s avoidance of negative emotions leads her to make decisions that prioritize short-term happiness over long-term emotional health. For instance, she might encourage Riley to engage in activities or make choices that feel good in the moment but don’t address underlying issues or fears, ultimately causing more problems. Ok erm… at this point Joy seems like my brain… toxic…
A: Nah nah nah bruh, let me stop you right there. Joy is a gone case. But I feel you HAHA.
L: Do you have any opinions of the new emotions. I thought envy was so adowableeee. And anxiety being the leader of the new emotions was a really interesting and symbolic choice.
A: Something that struck me was the fact that in the movie, anxiety is the leader of the new emotions. I thought it was such an intelligent, subtle way to allude to the harsh realities of growing up — where changes bring uncertainty and anxiety, which leads the way for a whole host of other emotions (all of which can’t possibly fit into a 2-hour movie).
L: That’s true… speaking of lead emotions, did you notice that when we saw inside Riley’s mom’s head, sadness was giving real main character energy?
A: You’re so right! I sure hope she’s okay…
L: Don’t worry, remember — a little Sadness isn’t always a bad thing. And maybe, come to think of it, Riley wouldn’t have had such a wild ride if Sadness was in charge instead of Joy.
A: Ooh I think you’re onto something! An Inside Out 3 where Sadness finally asserts herself and shows them all who’s boss? I’d totally be into that! Another thing I noticed was that embarrassment’s the biggest emotion portrayed in the movie… could this be an allusion to the fact that despite making you want to dig a hole and hide away, no other feeling makes you feel as big and noticeable as embarrassment does?
L: Good point, likewise, envy makes you feel small and inadequate, that’s probably why envy was tiny!
A: Awww I still can’t get over how cute she is! Anyways, let’s talk about the fan favourite emotion of this season — Ennui!
L: Ennui was so relatable! Till I watched the movie, I always thought that Ennui was just a fancy-pants synonym for boredom, but it actually means feeling bored and tired at the same time!
A: Isn’t that honestly such a mood? Ennui is a kind of existential dissatisfaction that you can’t really express in a single English word, come to think of it.
L: Good point! Anyway, Inside out 2 explores so many interesting themes about growing up, and the signs of maturing. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, and wouldn’t mind another addition to the series!
A: Same! Well, that’s all folks! Remember to check out the Journalism clubs signs newsletter and our previous fun Journsplit podcast episodes! Hope you had fun! This is Aditi!
L: And this is Lokesh!
L + A: Signing off for good!
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