The Incredibles 2 - Movie Review

I loved the first Incredibles film; it was impressive since it was Pixar's first film with all human characters. I remember when Pixar was making these sequels (Cars 2 and 3, Monsters University), I was thinking to myself, "Why aren't they making Incredibles 2 or Ratatouille 2?" (At least I got some relief from Finding Dory.) Writer-director Brad Bird has stated for many years that he would only make it if he felt that it could be as good as the first. And I respect him for that. He has made some of the greatest and fantastic animated films ever: The Iron Giant, The Incredibles, Ratatouille, and now this!
I loved this film; it was so good. This was an extremely exciting, well-made, awesome, entertaining and fun movie, accompanied by Michael Giacchino's score. One of my favorite things about Brad Bird's animated films is that they are intelligent. They never pander to children or treat them as if they're stupid.
Some of my favorite scenes are Bob Parr trying to take care of Jack-Jack and discovering what his powers are because one of the messages in the film is that being a superhero is not just fighting crime. Being a parent, raising children, being a family; that's just as heroic. Plus, they weren't trying to make him look like he's an idiot. It's not just a role-reversal plot cliche; it's more than that. 
There's a conversation where Elastigirl is talking to another character about superheroes and the law and politics surrounding them and it's an actual debate. This is the kind of thing where a kid might doze off, but, as an adult, I was enthralled watching this.
The animation is stunning and animators don't get enough credit. The action sequences are amazing and really shine. There's a sequence with a character named Void that can create portals and send things through them and transport them. She's trying to get Elastigirl up to a flying plane and they keep missing and have to try again. There's a sequence with a train that's going in reverse and Elastigirl has to use her abilities to get it to stop. There's a sequence where she's breaking into an apartment and the lighting feels like a dark, suspenseful drama and not like a kid's film.
The returning cast (Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Sarah Vowell and Samuel L. Jackson) makes these characters real, identifiable and likable. 
My biggest problem was I found the villain character both cliche and obvious; the setup was very weak and the motivation made no sense. There were no surprises for me. Syndrome, the villain from the first film, was much better. Granted, his motivation was pathetic and ridiculous, but that's the charm of it and matches the character, which makes it great. He also had this philosophy he was going for (the idea that if everyone's special, that means no one is), which is a very teachable moment. This movie was trying to be more serious than the first one, but the villain doesn't have a moment like that.
My other complaint is: although both films had great editing, they're also too long. However, because I'm such a huge Brad Bird fan, I don't care. I feel the audience won't mind either because they'll be too busy having a good time. I highly recommend this movie.
There's also an epic battle scene between Jack-Jack and a raccoon; not only is it brilliantly animated, but every gag hits bulls-eye. It's like Tom and Jerry-level classic slapstick.