Where is in the world will you find a town that actually rains cheeseburgers? Where meatballs acts like a hailstorm? Where else can you find a town that has ice-cream mountains and children everywhere are indulging on food they can enjoy? Not the food that has essential nutrients and vitamins for a healthy body, but unhealthy meals and sweet treats that will likely give you a tummy ache afterwards. "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" is truly one of the strangest movies I ever saw, but it stands out in terms of originality and creativity.
The movie itself is a 3-D animated film based off of the popular children's books back in the 1980's by Judi and Ron Barrett and is voiced by Bill Hader as the main character Flint Lockwood who lives in an Atlantic fishing community called Swallow Falls. They're famous for their sardine industry. When the sardine market starts to collapse due to economic constraints, Flint decides to invent a contraption that can help restore the food population just by adding a little water. Next thing you know, it starts raining cheeseburgers, and then ice cream starts to come down from the sky's above. Next thing you know we have a spaghetti hurricane and hail in the form of giant meatballs.
Ever since he was a little boy, Flint had the desire to become an inventor. However, his father, Tim (James Caan) wants him to work at his sardine store. I assume he needs the help knowing that his eyes seem to concealed by a big, bushy unibrow. Flint spends most of his time in his treehouse patenting his new food making apparatus which grows to epic proportions and voila, an instant success. Or so for the time being. Hate to sound cynical, but like all good tales, there is likely going to be some drawbacks, but in this movie, that's a big understatement.
I don't believe that "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" will be approved by health fanatics who have encouraged children for many many years to eat more healthier foods like vegetables or other essential nutrients for a well balanced diet. No the kids in this movie are scarfing down on pizza, burgers, ice-cream, gummi bears and chocolate. This machine can't make broccoli, asparagus and spinach, but who cares? The kids are having the time of their lives not caring about health risks like obesity and diabetes and premature heart disease. However, that's not the only problem. Eventually, Flint's machine ends up losing control and next things you know the island he lives on is now showered with mouth-watering foods. At least they won't have to worry about starvation for a while. It's up to Flint to find a way to stop the machine before things really start to go out of control.
The climax of the film features a dam and in it are leftovers causing a major avalanche to swoop over the town leaving it in a pile of rubble. Flint needs the USB drive to stop the machine which seems to have a mind of its own. He goes into a tunnel, but his girfriend Sam Sparks (Anna Faris) gets pierced by a peanut brittle and gets an allergic reaction. He stops the machine with his spray on shoes causing the machine and giant meatball to explode, the food storms die down and the island gets restored back to normal.
Aside from Flint, his girfriend Sam, and his father Tim, there are other remarkable characters that play prominent roles in the narrative. Bruce Campbell of "The Evil Dead" series was wonderful as corrupt Mayor Shelbourne. Andy Samberg is just a hoot as the voice of Brent McHale, who ever since infancy, has been the mascot for Baby Brent Sardines canned food. However, Neil Patrick Harris was excellent as Flint's monkey assistant, Steve who can translate his thoughts through a translator.
The animations basks in its own surrealism. Sure the hot fudge sundae mountains look bizarre, and the whole concpt of this movie might be appealing enough to keep the kids invested. But to the adults, we just think this movie went a step beyond weirdness. Even the physical looks of the characters. Flint looks like he his nose is bigger than his face and father Tim has one unibrow and no eyes.
I've seen my share of 3-D movies and several of them are either a hit or miss. "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" is a hit albeit of the stranger kind. From a technical standpoint, the 3-D elements are great upgrade that suceeds in providing an precise, clearer improvement compared to the one's before.
The movie itself is a 3-D animated film based off of the popular children's books back in the 1980's by Judi and Ron Barrett and is voiced by Bill Hader as the main character Flint Lockwood who lives in an Atlantic fishing community called Swallow Falls. They're famous for their sardine industry. When the sardine market starts to collapse due to economic constraints, Flint decides to invent a contraption that can help restore the food population just by adding a little water. Next thing you know, it starts raining cheeseburgers, and then ice cream starts to come down from the sky's above. Next thing you know we have a spaghetti hurricane and hail in the form of giant meatballs.
Ever since he was a little boy, Flint had the desire to become an inventor. However, his father, Tim (James Caan) wants him to work at his sardine store. I assume he needs the help knowing that his eyes seem to concealed by a big, bushy unibrow. Flint spends most of his time in his treehouse patenting his new food making apparatus which grows to epic proportions and voila, an instant success. Or so for the time being. Hate to sound cynical, but like all good tales, there is likely going to be some drawbacks, but in this movie, that's a big understatement.
I don't believe that "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" will be approved by health fanatics who have encouraged children for many many years to eat more healthier foods like vegetables or other essential nutrients for a well balanced diet. No the kids in this movie are scarfing down on pizza, burgers, ice-cream, gummi bears and chocolate. This machine can't make broccoli, asparagus and spinach, but who cares? The kids are having the time of their lives not caring about health risks like obesity and diabetes and premature heart disease. However, that's not the only problem. Eventually, Flint's machine ends up losing control and next things you know the island he lives on is now showered with mouth-watering foods. At least they won't have to worry about starvation for a while. It's up to Flint to find a way to stop the machine before things really start to go out of control.
The climax of the film features a dam and in it are leftovers causing a major avalanche to swoop over the town leaving it in a pile of rubble. Flint needs the USB drive to stop the machine which seems to have a mind of its own. He goes into a tunnel, but his girfriend Sam Sparks (Anna Faris) gets pierced by a peanut brittle and gets an allergic reaction. He stops the machine with his spray on shoes causing the machine and giant meatball to explode, the food storms die down and the island gets restored back to normal.
Aside from Flint, his girfriend Sam, and his father Tim, there are other remarkable characters that play prominent roles in the narrative. Bruce Campbell of "The Evil Dead" series was wonderful as corrupt Mayor Shelbourne. Andy Samberg is just a hoot as the voice of Brent McHale, who ever since infancy, has been the mascot for Baby Brent Sardines canned food. However, Neil Patrick Harris was excellent as Flint's monkey assistant, Steve who can translate his thoughts through a translator.
The animations basks in its own surrealism. Sure the hot fudge sundae mountains look bizarre, and the whole concpt of this movie might be appealing enough to keep the kids invested. But to the adults, we just think this movie went a step beyond weirdness. Even the physical looks of the characters. Flint looks like he his nose is bigger than his face and father Tim has one unibrow and no eyes.
I've seen my share of 3-D movies and several of them are either a hit or miss. "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" is a hit albeit of the stranger kind. From a technical standpoint, the 3-D elements are great upgrade that suceeds in providing an precise, clearer improvement compared to the one's before.