With so many animation studios attempting to replicate the winning formula of Pixar it's often a surprise when one of them turns out a feature that's appealing to adults as well as children. A film about food, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs is one of those rare animated films that tastes good going down, leaving little side effects because it was mixed with all the right ingredients.
Like the folks at Pixar, directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller appear to be fans of good animation and great movies in general, employing a variety of familiar film techniques and homages that work. Though their film enjoyed success theatrically as a 3D release, seeing it in good ole two dimensions is still an enjoyable experience because of its simple story with sweet and intriguing characters that inhabit it.
With so many animation studios attempting to replicate the winning formula of Pixar it's often a surprise when one of them turns out a feature that's appealing to adults as well as children. A film about food, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs is one of those rare animated films that tastes good going down, leaving little side effects because it was mixed with all the right ingredients. Like the folks at Pixar, directors Phil Lord and Christopher Miller appear to be fans of good animation and great movies in general, employing a variety of familiar film techniques and homages that work. Though their film enjoyed success theatrically as a 3D release, seeing it in good ole two dimensions is still an enjoyable experience because of its simple story with sweet and intriguing characters that inhabit it.
Based on the popular children's book by Judi and Ron Barrett, the film introduces us to the town of Swallow Falls which for years thrived on the sardine industry until the world moved on. With a mayor (Bruce Campbell) who is absolutely clueless on how to save the town, crackpot young inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) makes it his mission to invent a device that will improve the lives of everyone. Flint is an eccentric young man whose bizarre creations include spray on shoes, flying rats and a device that enables his pet monkey to talk. Even his dad (James Caan) who speaks mostly in fishing metaphors, doesn't think his son can create something that would benefit mankind, but Flint surprises everyone, including himself with a contraption that transforms water into any type of food. When the machine is launched skyward, it sucks up the gloomy clouds in the sky and produces every type of food imaginable, showering the town with a buffet and making him a hero. With the town an overnight tourist attraction, Flint becomes a hero to his fellow citizens and gains the attention of aspiring TV weather girl Sam Sparks (Anna Faris).
Of course with everything now going so smoothly for Flint, its only a matter of time before everything goes incredibly wrong. Under pressure from the morbidly obese mayor, Flint pushes the food producing capabilities of his machine beyond its limits and soon the contraption becomes a self aware nightmare. The continual rain of food begins to reach global proportions and Flint once the savior of his town looks to become its destroyer. Naturally, the increasing threat of such a scenario leads to some exciting action set-pieces, which all happen to involve food, but there's also a lot of heart within this tale. Despite the fact that people have been rendered in a caricature style with elastic faces, starting with Flint, these are fully realized characters and they are given the right touch of humanity by the voice actors. It was an inspired choice by Miller and Lord to provide Swallow Falls' lead cop Earl with the voice of Mr. T. whose character is almost as larger-than-life as the actor himself. Caan's somber delivery is actually pitch perfect for a character who is unable to emotionally connect with his son and then there's Hader and Faris, whose voices are filled with unbridled enthusiasmiasm, bringing life to a nerd and the girl he likes who may be a closeted geek herself.
On more than one occasion, the film can be a visual marvel such as how the color palette evolves when the town goes from having drab skies to mesmerizing vistas as well as the attention to detail concerning the various types of food. One of the most effective sequences involves Flint courting Sam by building her a palace made of Jell-O and experiencing the joyful abandon that comes from bouncing around inside of it. A playful and enjoyable feature that may have been designed with 3D in mind, but can still be a quite a treat for your eyes without those clumsy glasses.
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