Incredibles 2 is a family friendly animation that's also the ultimate crowdpleaser - because it plays it safe.

The Incredibles 2 has already broken box-office records, becoming the most successful animated film of all time. Really? It beat out the socially conscious Zootopia, the frankly ingenious exploration of emotion Inside Out, and the utterly heartbreaking Toy Story 3?

Maybe therein lies the answer. The Incredibles 2 has the ultimate crowd-pleasing formula. It has an inbuilt fanbase who’ve been waiting fourteen years for this sequel. The superhero nuclear family is the one idea that hasn’t been mined in Marvel’s flicks. The Incredibles 2 won’t threaten anyone, challenge anyone or leave anyone teary-eyed – and sometimes that’s what you need.

Set in the 1960s, superheroes have become public enemy number one. When a tech billionaire suggests that matriarch Helen, aka Elastigirl, embarks on a pro-superhero PR crusade, it’s up to her husband Bob, aka Mr. Incredible, to stay at home and mind the kids: occasionally invisible tween Violet; young and speedy Dash; and baby Jack-Jack, who just might have every superpower going – and no way to control any of them.

Bob’s sitcom struggles to deal with violet’s first crush and Jack-Jack’s emerging powers are juxtaposed with Helen’s mission to take down a villain called Screenslaver, who is hypnotising civilians through their television screens. Director Brad Bird injects Bob’s struggles with an explosive baby with the same kinetic, joyous energy as he brings to Elastigirl’s motorbike chases across cities and on train tops, and the visuals are a delight of ‘60s style in neon colours.

For such a forward-thinking studio, the retro themes feel like a slight step backwards – but we’re all showing up for it. Maybe Pixar know us better than we know ourselves.

3 / 5

The Incredibles 2 is in cinemas now.

Directed by Brad Bird. Featuring the voices of Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell, Huck Milner, Catherine Keener, Bob Odenkirk, Samuel L. Jackson. 118 mins.