--- title: "Inside Out: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/inside-out/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/inside-out" critics_score: 85 critics_reviews: 15 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Inside Out (2015): what the critics said Critics' score 85 from 15 reviews: 15 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. The consensus is strongly positive, with praise centred on the film’s visual invention and its respect for children’s complicated feelings. Most critics find that the control centre inside Riley’s mind makes memory, change and emotional confusion understandable without sacrificing humour or poignancy. The imaginative inner landscapes and Amy Poehler’s voice performance as Joy draw particular praise, while the family move gives the elaborate premise a familiar human setting. The reviews repeatedly credit the film with appealing to adults and children without talking down to either. Reservations concern how insistently the film explains its ideas and how conventionally it sometimes tells its story. The New Yorker finds moments of adult theorising where a child’s perspective might serve better; The Playlist notes didactic exposition early on; The Wrap argues that the familiar plot weakens the central metaphor. These are qualifications within broadly favourable reviews, rather than a substantial split over the film’s merits. ## Radio Times Rating 5/5. 28 December 2019. Pixar navigates the brain control centre of an 11-year-old girl upset by a family move with masterful precision, juggling poignant drama and visual pizzazz to create another tremendously entertaining triumph that shakes up family animation clichés. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movies/inside-out-review/) ## Vulture — David Edelstein Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 17 June 2015. The review celebrates the film's inventive exploration of the mind as a theme park run by personified emotions, emphasizing how it captures the pain of loss and the value of mixed feelings during Riley's difficult transition. It singles out Amy Poehler's nuanced voice work as Joy and the film's therapeutic yet entertaining approach to emotional complexity. [Read the review](https://www.vulture.com/2015/06/movie-review-inside-out.html) ## Sight and Sound — Nick Pinkerton Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 29 July 2015. The film offers a wildly entertaining and inventive exploration of an 11-year-old girl's psyche through personified emotions, respecting children's feelings with wit and visual invention while delivering a gentle moral about the value of sadness. [Read the review](https://www.bfi.org.uk/sight-and-sound/reviews/film-week-inside-out) ## Slant Magazine — Christopher Gray Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 13 June 2015. The critic describes the film as both wonderfully complex and reductive in its depiction of the mind as a boardroom of emotions, praising its inventive tour of memory and identity. He notes Docter’s skill at blending on-the-nose ideas with dazzling invention and singles out the poignant resolution involving the role of sadness. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/inside-out-2015/) ## The Guardian — Peter Bradshaw Fi1m's normalised score 85/100 (inferred from the text). 26 July 2015. Pixar returns to form with a dazzlingly imaginative adventure set inside the mind of an 11-year-old girl. The film is in the top rank of Pixar productions with its combination of audacity, intelligence, wit and emotional reward. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2015/jul/26/inside-out-review-pixar-emotional-rollercoaster) ## Little White Lies — Sophie Monks Kaufman Rating 4/4/5. 24 July 2015. Pixar delivers a sophisticated, witty and true exploration of a child's inner psyche through colour-coded emotions, blending surface delights with deeper themes of growing up and letting go. [Read the review](https://lwlies.com/reviews/inside-out) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 18 May 2015. Festival review. Pixar delivers another richly realised, candy-coloured universe in this witty, emotionally deft film with a relatable and ingenious premise about what goes on inside our heads, likely to achieve strong commercial returns. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/reviews/inside-out-review/5087439.article) ## The Hollywood Reporter — Todd McCarthy Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 18 May 2015. The critic lauds the film's bold personification of emotions as cartoon characters in a control room inside an 11-year-old girl's mind, noting its conceptual ingenuity and ability to appeal simultaneously to children and adults. He highlights the emotional journey as Riley adjusts to a family move and praises the voice performances, especially Amy Poehler as Joy. [Read the review](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/inside-film-review-796483/) ## Time Out Rating 4/5. 16 July 2015. Pixar's latest is a delightful, frenetic, near-experimental animated film that dives into the mind of an 11-year-old girl whose world is turned upside down by a move, with bold thinking that appeals to both kids and adults. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/film/inside-out-film-review) ## The New Yorker — Anthony Lane Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 22 June 2015. The movie offers an inventive visualization of a girl’s mind with five emotions at the controls, proving hard to top for originality this year. It excels in visual sheen and domestic insight but occasionally feels like adult theorizing rather than a child’s story. [Read the review](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2015/06/29/head-trips) ## Empire — Ian Freer 20 July 2015. The review praises the film as audacious, silly, funny and imaginative, with profound pathos in dramatising human emotions and the role of sadness. It singles out the inventive inner-world sequences (such as Abstract Thought and Dream Production) and the emotional impact on Riley’s coming-of-age story. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/inside-review/) ## Evening Standard — David Sexton 27 July 2015. The critic calls the film a tearfully touching, wonderfully inventive and gloriously funny triumph that helps viewers understand emotions. They single out the technical differentiation between the bright inner world and the muted outer world, plus Amy Poehler’s voice performance as Joy. [Read the review](https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/film/inside-out-review-a-joyous-and-inventive-triumph-10412618.html) ## Film Comment — Michael Sragow 1 July 2015. The critic finds the film both audacious and unpretentious, praising its imaginative mapping of an 11-year-old girl's mind through everyday visual elements. It generates convulsive comedy and drama while exploring themes of emotion, memory, and change. [Read the review](https://www.filmcomment.com/article/review-inside-out-pixar/) ## Los Angeles Times — Kenneth Turan 17 June 2015. Pixar stands alone with this sophisticated yet simple film that probes deeper questions about life through visual magic and emotional sensitivity. Director Pete Docter’s examination of an 11-year-old girl’s mind and emotions is honest, unafraid, and moving without cheap sentiment. [Read the review](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-inside-out-review-20150619-column.html) ## The New York Times — A.O. Scott Rating NYT Critic’s Pick. 18 June 2015. The film demolishes the idea that movies cannot think by using whimsy and literal-mindedness to solve philosophical problems about emotions. It centers on an 11-year-old girl’s move to San Francisco and the resulting interior drama managed by personified feelings. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/19/movies/review-pixars-inside-out-finds-the-joy-in-sadness-and-vice-versa.html) ## Total Film — Jamie Graham 20 July 2015. The critic hails it as A-grade Pixar and the studio’s finest since Toy Story 3, celebrating its dazzling original concept about leaving childhood behind. They single out the heady mix of imagination, technical marvel and emotional depth in Joy and Sadness’s journey through the mind. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/inside-out-review/) ## Variety 18 May 2015. Festival review. Pixar’s most out-there concept fuels its most vivid and relatable film yet, delivering a stunningly original idea that changes how people think about thinking. It combines creative fireworks with a relatable family story of an 11-year-old’s move and emotional turmoil. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2015/film/festivals/inside-out-review-disney-pixar-cannes-1201499227/) ## Den of Geek — Don Kaye Rating 5/5. 17 June 2015. Pixar's Inside Out is called a flat-out masterpiece and one of the studio's finest creations, with praise for its original concept, emotional depth, and handling of themes like loss of innocence and memory. The review highlights the strong voice cast and visual imagination while noting it works for all ages. [Read the review](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/inside-out-review/) ## Collider — Matt Goldberg Rating A. 18 June 2015. The film is a return to form for Pixar and an emotional triumph that will make viewers weep in the best way possible. It stands out for its imaginative, idea-driven storytelling set inside a young girl's mind. [Read the review](https://collider.com/inside-out-review-pixar/) ## Polygon — Danielle Riendeau Fi1m's normalised score 90/100 (inferred from the text). 5 June 2015. The film is Pixar's most personal and best in years, emotionally honest and funny while delivering a strong message that all feelings, including negative ones, are necessary. It excels through its clever depiction of universal experiences via the interplay of Riley's emotions. [Read the review](https://www.polygon.com/2015/6/5/8733925/inside-out-review/) ## The Playlist — The Playlist Staff Rating B+. 15 June 2015. Festival review. The critic notes the film's high-concept setup leads to some didactic exposition early on, but praises how it soars in the second half with imaginative inner landscapes, witty humor, and heartfelt conclusions about emotions and growing up. They single out the touching arc involving Riley's imaginary friend Bing Bong for particular emotional impact. [Read the review](https://theplaylist.net/review-pixar-finds-poetry-in-emotion-with-inside-out-20150615/) ## The Wrap Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 16 June 2015. The critic finds the film emotionally moving and thematically rich, with standout moments that rival the best Pixar work, but notes that the experience feels fleeting due to a conventional plot structure that undercuts the central metaphor. [Read the review](https://www.thewrap.com/inside-out-review-pixar-amy-poehler-phyllis-smith-mindy-kaling/) ## Deadline — Pete Hammond 19 June 2015. The critic calls the film wildly original, inventive, and visually dazzling, hailing it as one of the most creative animated features since Fantasia and a likely awards contender that will appeal to all ages. [Read the review](https://deadline.com/2015/06/inside-out-review-pixar-amy-poehler-bill-hader-mindy-kaling-1201428574/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/inside-out.md