Movie of the Week – The Incredibles

This week’s movie: The Incredibles (2004)

Superheroes were a big part of our world, but after some bad publicity they were asked to take off their masks and return to normal society. Now, many years later, former superheroes Bob and Helen Parr lead normal boring lives, raising a family – Bob works for an insurance company and Helen is a homemaker. But while family seems to be enough for Helen, Bob still has a yearning for more. This makes him an easy target to be lured into a budding scheme by a super villain to gain fame and notoriety, putting the world in grave danger in the process.

The film is written and directing by Brad Bird, who has made many of the best animated features in recent years, including: The Iron Giant and Ratatouille. He has now moved on to live-action features with Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and the upcoming Tomorrowland. He worked with great composer Michael Giacchino on the film.

The film features voice work from Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L. Jackson, Jason Lee, Wallace Shawn, and Elizabeth Pena (Bird voiced Edna, a nod to famous costume designer Edith Head).

The Incredibles won the 2005 Oscar for Best Animated Feature. It is maybe Pixar’s best film to date (though, WALL-E and Up are great as well), featuring the right balance of action, drama and comedy. The characters are also very well written, something that is not too common in films made primarily for children in today’s cinema. While it is probably considered a superhero film, it feels much more like a spy thriller in the vein of classic James Bond films. It is a must-see for Pixar fans.

Trailer: Here

Available on: Blu-ray and Video On-Demand