Pixar turn it around for themselves in their own film, mitigating every minor deficiency in their story so comprehensively you have to strain to see them. They make you care about something almost careless, a redundant, passe plot about rich white people - who ever knew a movie about rich white people could be so emotionally stirring?! Inside Out, past all its contrivances, past its smugness, past the staid familiarity of its ethical codes, is a wondrous film. It is as emotive as it is emotional, which is emblematic of the ingenuity with which the filmmakers integrate their every narrative and stylistic notion into the fabric of the film. A thrilling flight of fancy is utilised for pragmatic purposes, quaint little quips amass immense power when contextualised and running gags bear as much purpose in making us think or feel as in making us giggle. It's appropriately joyous to witness Pixar's artists deploy their artistry, and it's neither the concepts nor the desired results, but the application of those concepts to achieve those results that makes Inside Out the superior work of art that it is - better still, in dedicating their efforts to executing their aims, rather than to the development of the aims themselves, they permit the audience to enjoy the film without even noticing those efforts (if you're a casual viewer, alas). The film is well-rounded, complete, yet not enclosed, as it has a breadth achieved through the specificity of its concerns - as aforementioned, Inside Out not only makes you feel, it makes you think too, specifically about your own emotions, and it's thus that it amasses its most potent power. For this rich white person in particular, this imperfect little gem was a richer experience still.
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