1) Bing Bong Fades Into Nothingness In Inside Out
The Good Dinosaur – a Pixar effort that’s more obviously geared towards children than most of the movies the studio puts out – may not be troubling anyone’s sleep, but Pixar’s other 2015 effort had more than its fair share of moments made for adult viewers.
The very premise of Inside Out – the emotions inside a pre-teen girl’s head try to navigate her difficult years coming of age – makes the film so psychologically and thematically complex as to be more relevant to older viewers anyway.
The single darkest moment of the film, however, comes when Riley’s imaginary childhood friend Bing Bong – an outrageously adorable creature that’s part elephant, part kitten, part dolphin, all cotton candy – fades away into being forgotten forever, after years spent wandering Riley’s subconscious looking for ways to reconnect with her.
It’s another commentary on failing innocence and loss, something Pixar does all too well. You just wish they hadn’t effectively killed off the loveable weird cat/elephant thing to make the lesson.