THE INCREDIBLES

Sorry, it's not all that great.

There's a lot to look at, sure, and I can definitely see the expertise that went into its creation, but it simply didn't grab me.

People have talked about the supposed Rand-ian polemic buried within it, but frankly I'd care more if the movie were, you know, more entertaining. Whatever "message" there was, it doesn't really matter after the first 30 minutes, from which point it's non-stop anim-action. And even in that opening half-hour, you're probably consumed by thoughts like "is that... Wallace Shawn?"

That said, the X-Men comics and movies explore the themes of mutants' ("supers") rights relative to those of the general population better than this movie does. And it's hard to argue that The Incredibles is conservative, for it it is, then it gets its narratives crossed. The superheroes are forced out of work due to excessive litigation (cute), yet just a couple minutes later we find Elastigirl placing family values over super-dom. Thus, the institution of the superhero is assailed from both the "left" and the "right".

Frankly, Shrek 2 was a lot funnier. Hell, so was Finding Nemo. And I really wanted to like it. Also, director Brad Bird's The Iron Giant is a much, much better film, and deals with real issues (the Cold War) in a much more profound manner.