Inside Out

Inside an 11-year-old girl's head, conflicting yet complementary emotions of Joy (voiced by Amy Poehler), Sadness (Phyllis Smith), Anger (Lewis Black), Fear (Bill Hader) and Disgust (Mindy Kaling) vie for control of “headquarters” when the girl's family moves from Minnesota to San Francisco. The crisis and the conflict threaten to unravel the delicate balance of the girl's personality, and how the emotions learn to adapt and work together form the core of the script by Meg LeFauve, Josh Cooley, and co-directors Pete Docter and Ronnie Del Carmen. The result is joyously funny, as good as anything Pixar Studios has ever done. It explores subtle psychological concepts, playing with the limits of what children can absorb and, in the process, giving them—and adults—an insight into what makes them tick. J.L.