Poor Bob Parr. He used to be a superhero; now he's got a dead-end job and lives an uneventful suburban existence. Such is the world of The Incredibles, a world where the rising cost of litigation and falling public opinion have forced such superfriends as Bob (aka Mr. Incredible) and his equally marvelous wife Helen (aka Elastigirl) into premature retirement.
Their loss is our gain, as The Incredibles turns out to be another instant classic from Pixar and writer-director Brad Bird (The Iron Giant). In the film, Bob gets pulled back to his heroic life, which inadvertently reconnects him with his family. With comic-book in-jokes, themes of middle-aged regret and a PG rating, The Incredibles might be the first Pixar film to appeal more to parents than kids. Of course, its explosive action is a blast, the characters are well-defined, and it has a big heart, too. And that's just super.