Below is a brief excerpt from a piece that I wrote for Movie Marker in 2024, shortly after the release of Inside Out 2, about the calm that film’s depiction of Anxiety, particularly in terms of its visualisations, made me feel. When it comes to things that I’ve written it’s one of the pieces that I’m most proud of, and occasionally find myself looking back on; which is something of a rarity for me. You can read the full feature on the Movie Marker website.
“As the emotions of 13-year-old Riley gather round the Headquarters console, waiting for an email to see if she’s made the high school hockey team, the bright orange figure of Anxiety (voiced by Maya Hawke) pops up in a sudden burst of worry. In a personally highly relatable throwaway line, as the film winds down, going over the lessons learned over the last 90 minutes, she panics about what will happen if they’re unsuccessful. Things rapidly escalate from disappointed parents to “we have no friends, and we die alone!”
Quickly, she’s guided to a massage chair, given a cup of Anxi-tea (a pun fitting of Aardman) and reassured that there’s no need to worry about something like this, which is out of the control of Riley (Kensington Tallman) and her emotions. What we see is a much calmer, more ordered form of Anxiety. Focusing on the now and near-future rather than the extreme worst-case scenarios many years down the line, without even considering the other chances and opportunities which could arise.
Much like its 2015 predecessor spoke of the importance of sadness, and being open about your emotions, Inside Out 2 talks about how it’s ok to worry. A bit of anxiety is fine; nerves are natural. What we need to remember is to not lose control of who we are in these moments…”
Just A Little Bit Random 