In 2009, Sony Pictures Animation released "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs", a film that had scored high points in originality and creativity and demonstrates that the sky is the limit in terms of our imagination. Based off of a classic children's novel by Judi and Ron Barrett, the visuals in that movie was taken at a highly professional level while at the same that action was over-the-top spontaneous while also being very clever in all essential areas of filmmaking. With a world that centres around the aftermath of a food apocalypse and the townspeople going to great lengths to clean up the town, while opening the gates for a new conflict our heroes have to enconter. Directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller created a world filled with action, adventure, and comedy that has something to offer for both kids and adults alike.
In 2013, the sequel "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" was released and it still captures a lot of the imagination, although the magic is gone in some areas, it's still very satisfying to watch. There is still plenty of entertainment for everyone to see, however the screenwriting is a bit of a red herring and the humour is a bit lowered down compared to the first installment, there is still plenty to love about this sequel and I'm sure kids and parents will have a fun time watching this one.
After the food-making machine which turned Swallow Falls into an edible disaster, the town is ready to move forwards and clean the mess up. With the help of Live Corp led by CEO Chester V (Will Forte), hires the aspiring inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) to work for his company, we later realize it was not for good intentions. Chester informs Flint that he needs to go back to his island residence to look into his food-prosessing device and to shut it down. The reason why is because the machine has created food-themed monsters running all over the town causing mischief towards the civilians. Flint is joined by his girlfriend, Sam (Anna Faris), Officer Earl (Terry Crews), Manny (Benjamin Bratt), Chicken Brent (Andy Samberg) and his father Tim (James Caan) to put a stop to this machine's madness. Flint's focus however is to make a lasting impression on Chester that often times takes over his consentraition by planting a USB device to shut down his machine.
Replacing Lord and Miller and a duo of new directors this time with Cody Cameron and Kris Pearn who succeed in keeping the cartoonish elements that worked successfully from the first movie. From the raw energy that worked effectively from the first movie to creating a Disney themed character-driven narrative that's pure in escapism where surrealism is king and the animators having more fun than labour in creating newly created monsters that will surely either scare you or make you hungry whichever comes first. They also were up to the challenge of creating new dangers and new adventures for Flint and his allies refraining from repeating the same story from the previous installment. The only weakness to this sequel is there is really not much to be surprised about.
With Swallow Falls being taken over by food-animal hybrids, we as the audience don't really know how to react when seeing these creatures because we don't know if they're dangerous or just a ragtag of misunderstood misfits with a physical and psychological unpredictability. One of the more better interaction of the food hybrids is when Tim seems to be on friendly terms with mutated pickles adopting himself as a father as he teaches them how to fish. There are more dangerous villainy food creatures like a crocodile-taco and a cheeseburger-spider with french fries for legs who seems to be transfixed under Chester's persuasions. But we can't ignore that cute strawberry with eyes named Berry, who's very harmless and just wants to be friends with Flint. These creatures are the reasons to be invested into the story and make up for the murky scrpit surrounding Chester V and his real plans. Whenever these critters come on screen, there is never a dull moment.
While the movie is endless barrage of whimsical wordplay especially when it comes to deciding what to named each food themed monster. The details put on display is met with great dedication to the craft at Sony Pictures Animation and truly deserve our praise to circle around original storytelling to an otherwise repeated atmosphere. It's just a shame that not enough heart was put into the story. The only subplot that had some heart was Tim who wanted to spend quality time with his son and had to adopt pickles to fill in the void. The Chester V and his evil schemes were exciting to watch, but felt very rushed with no time to saviour in the moments. The sequel does stand out as our heroes are dealt with another adventure this time dealing with the wildlife that has manifested in their humble little island town. The sequel may be inferior to the first movie, but there is something you can enjoy with friends and family of all ages.
In 2013, the sequel "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" was released and it still captures a lot of the imagination, although the magic is gone in some areas, it's still very satisfying to watch. There is still plenty of entertainment for everyone to see, however the screenwriting is a bit of a red herring and the humour is a bit lowered down compared to the first installment, there is still plenty to love about this sequel and I'm sure kids and parents will have a fun time watching this one.
After the food-making machine which turned Swallow Falls into an edible disaster, the town is ready to move forwards and clean the mess up. With the help of Live Corp led by CEO Chester V (Will Forte), hires the aspiring inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) to work for his company, we later realize it was not for good intentions. Chester informs Flint that he needs to go back to his island residence to look into his food-prosessing device and to shut it down. The reason why is because the machine has created food-themed monsters running all over the town causing mischief towards the civilians. Flint is joined by his girlfriend, Sam (Anna Faris), Officer Earl (Terry Crews), Manny (Benjamin Bratt), Chicken Brent (Andy Samberg) and his father Tim (James Caan) to put a stop to this machine's madness. Flint's focus however is to make a lasting impression on Chester that often times takes over his consentraition by planting a USB device to shut down his machine.
Replacing Lord and Miller and a duo of new directors this time with Cody Cameron and Kris Pearn who succeed in keeping the cartoonish elements that worked successfully from the first movie. From the raw energy that worked effectively from the first movie to creating a Disney themed character-driven narrative that's pure in escapism where surrealism is king and the animators having more fun than labour in creating newly created monsters that will surely either scare you or make you hungry whichever comes first. They also were up to the challenge of creating new dangers and new adventures for Flint and his allies refraining from repeating the same story from the previous installment. The only weakness to this sequel is there is really not much to be surprised about.
With Swallow Falls being taken over by food-animal hybrids, we as the audience don't really know how to react when seeing these creatures because we don't know if they're dangerous or just a ragtag of misunderstood misfits with a physical and psychological unpredictability. One of the more better interaction of the food hybrids is when Tim seems to be on friendly terms with mutated pickles adopting himself as a father as he teaches them how to fish. There are more dangerous villainy food creatures like a crocodile-taco and a cheeseburger-spider with french fries for legs who seems to be transfixed under Chester's persuasions. But we can't ignore that cute strawberry with eyes named Berry, who's very harmless and just wants to be friends with Flint. These creatures are the reasons to be invested into the story and make up for the murky scrpit surrounding Chester V and his real plans. Whenever these critters come on screen, there is never a dull moment.
While the movie is endless barrage of whimsical wordplay especially when it comes to deciding what to named each food themed monster. The details put on display is met with great dedication to the craft at Sony Pictures Animation and truly deserve our praise to circle around original storytelling to an otherwise repeated atmosphere. It's just a shame that not enough heart was put into the story. The only subplot that had some heart was Tim who wanted to spend quality time with his son and had to adopt pickles to fill in the void. The Chester V and his evil schemes were exciting to watch, but felt very rushed with no time to saviour in the moments. The sequel does stand out as our heroes are dealt with another adventure this time dealing with the wildlife that has manifested in their humble little island town. The sequel may be inferior to the first movie, but there is something you can enjoy with friends and family of all ages.