The Incredibles (2004)

With the sequel opening in theaters today, first let's take a look at the first film, The Incredibles.

The Movie:

The Incredibles is the 6th movie to come out of Pixar and the first to be directed by someone who was previously not affiliated with Pixar.  This director was Brad Bird, who also wrote the movie, and had previously directed the highly acclaimed by financially unsuccessful The Iron Giant for Warner Bros.  The Incredibles was also Pixar's first movie with human protagonists.  It went on to win the Oscar for Best Animated Film and the Hugo Award, the first animated movie to do so.

In the movie's opening, "supers" are outlawed due to the rising cost of lawsuits and public backlash against their collateral damage.  Fifteen years later, the former Mr. Incredible and Elastigirl are living the married, suburban life as Bob and Helen Parr, with three kids, Violet, Dash, and Jack-Jack.  Bob has had a tough time adjusting to life as a regular person, and has taken to moonlighting hero work with his old pal Lucius, aka Frozone.  However, when a mysterious message offers him a chance to once again be "super," he jumps at the opportunity, kicking off a new adventure.

So hands down, this is my favorite Pixar movie, and for the longest time the only one I owned on DVD.  (By the time I started getting others, I was already on to Blu Ray.)  The Incredibles is a fun, action movie, but at the same time it offers a lot of commentary on conventional superhero tropes and plays around with the great power equals responsibility often associated with Spider-man, though that line is never directly referenced.  What makes the story work is that it is based around the family and spends time to develop their world and their problems as people, not just as heroes.  The movie also takes a lot of cues from the spy genre, in particular James Bond movies.

Helping to really drive home the Bond influence is the music by Michael Giacchino, who wrote a jazz heavy score that easily fits in with John Barry's music from the 007 movies.  The main theme is iconic and memorable, and it is peppered throughout the movie.  This score earned Giacchino the International Film Music Critics Association award for Score of the Year.

On a final note, all the voice acting is great, but some of the most memorable lines go to Frozone, played by Samuel L. Jackson ("Where's my super suit?") and fashion designer Edna Mode, voiced by the director himself ("No capes!").

Presence in the Parks:

Well considering the sequel is opening today, if you visit the parks this summer, you are bound to find a lot.  However, we'll cover that when we get to the sequel.  Let's examine what attractions have come about since the first movie.

For several years, Mr. Incredible, Elastigirl, and Frozone were the star of one of the more unusual and somewhat out of place attractions at WDW.  In recent years, the Magic Kingdom has become home to several different "dance parties," events designed for kids to meet characters not by posing for a picture and getting an autograph, but dancing around with them.  At one time, Tomorrowland hosted one called "Club 626" on the Plaza Stage featuring Stitch along with Goofy, Chip, Dale, and Pluto.  And given that Stitch had already taken up home in the former Alien Encounter across the plaza, it sort of made sense.

Then in 2013, The Incredibles took over and the show was rethemed as the Incredibles Super Dance Party.  I remember seeing just a bit of one show when I was there in 2015, and it struck me as being rather odd, but I'm probably not the target audience.

That show officially closed in 2017, but a similar show is back up and running this summer called Super Party Time.  As great as a movie that The Incredibles is, it's really a shame that this has been the biggest influence in the parks, at least on the east coast.

Out west, The Incredibles are about to make a big splash at DCA.  When that park opened in 2001, one of the biggest and most visible attractions was a roller coaster called California Screamin', which sat at the far end of the park in an area called Paradise Pier.  Like several other in Disney parks, this one had music playing during the ride, with the track written by Michael Giacchino.  The coaster originally had the shape of a Mickey head on the side.  Nearby sat a giant Ferris wheel called the Sun Wheel with a large sun on the side.  As part of the DCA 2.0 revamp, the Sun Wheel became Mickey's Fun Wheel with Mickey's head replacing the sun, and California Screamin' now had a sun emblem and the words "Paradise Pier."

California Screamin', December 2002

Paradise Pier is now being rethemed as Pixar Pier, and both rides are being rethemed along with it.  The Ferris wheel will now be the Pixar Pal-A-Round, and California Screamin' becomes the Incredicoaster, based around The Incredibles.  While the coaster will be largely unchanged, we will most likely be treated to different Giacchino music on the ride going forward.