New INSIDE OUT Trailer: Is Pixar Back on Track?

A new trailer for Inside Out debuted during The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Tuesday, and it immediately got me asking this question: Is this the film that gets Pixar Studios back on track?

For over a decade, Pixar was untouchable. They delivered critical hit after critical hits, all timeless movies that were also megahits at the box office. Monsters Inc. The Incredibles. Wall-E. Up. Toy Story. Toy Story 2. Toy Story 3. Pick any of them — no other studio has ever been at this level.

Then came the dark ages. Then came Cars 2. Pixar chose to make a movie that was more toy commercial than film and threw away years of spotless reputation in the process. DreamWorks Animation was always about the cheap laughs, the fart jokes and the easy pop culture references. That wasn't Pixar.

Since Cars 2, though, the studio hasn't been the same. Sure, Brave won an Oscar for Best Animated Feature, but everyone recognized that it was still a low moment for the studio. Monsters University couldn't match the films that came before Cars 2. The studio took 2014 off to recalibrate several projects.

Inside Out represents a possible turning point for Pixar. This film can either restore the studio to glory ... or it can further its descent into the shadows of Walt Disney Animation.



Based on this trailer, Inside Out can be the film that turns Pixar around. It looks creative and funny in a way that Pixar has always specialized in. You won't see an animated alien voiced by a Big Bang Theory star spouting tired pop culture phrases in Inside Out. Pixar was once better than that — and it can prove that it still is.

Inside Out opens on June 19. It stars the voice talents of Amy Poehler, Lewis Black, Mindy Kaling, Bill Hader, Phyllis Smith, Kaitlyn Dias, Diane Lane, Kyle MacLachlan and John Ratzenberger. Inside Out is directed by Pete Docter.