Pixar fans are eagerly anticipating Inside Out, not just because the studio hasn’t released a film since 2013, but also because original stories that don’t connect to previously established franchises are becoming a rarity for Pixar these days. Thankfully, this delightful trailer suggests that Monsters, Inc. and Up director Pete Docter hasn’t squandered the opportunity.
Inside Out tells the story of 11-year-old Riley, who moves with her family from the Midwest to San Francisco. Audiences are privy to how she manages her displacement by observing the anthropomorphized emotions in her head. The emotions include Joy (Amy Poehler), Fear (Bill Hader), Anger (Lewis Black), Disgust (Mindy Kaling), and Sadness (Phyllis Smith). This latest trailer reveals a bit about the actual plot, which involves Joy and Sadness becoming separated from Headquarters—where Disgust, Fear, and Anger are left to control Riley on their own—and embarking on a journey through the young girl’s mind. In their travels, Joy and Sadness encounter myriad obstacles, such as a seemingly endless maze of long-term memories and the beguiling Imagination Land (no, not that one).
Back at Headquarters, we observe the remaining emotions’ reactions to real-time events, such as Fear growing skittish when Riley is in an unfamiliar darkened bedroom and Anger acting the way Lewis Black probably does in real life when seeing broccoli on pizza. In a nice touch, the antics are set to the tune of Boston’s “More Than A Feeling.” While we won’t know how good the movie is until its release on June 19, this trailer will remind you that, once upon a time, Pixar could do no wrong.