Yummy! “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” leaves the viewers hungry not only for some hot dogs topped with donuts and ice cream, but also for more of the adorable and humorous animated film. The Columbia Pictures and Sony Pictures movie is inspired by the popular 1978 children’s book written by Judi Barrett and illustrated by Ron Barrett.
The film is about Flint Lockwood (voice of Bill Hader) a young and failing inventor who continuously attempts to find his big break. His big break comes when he invents a machine that converts water to food in order to save his town plagued by sardines. However, Lockwood’s plans soon go awry as the town must be saved from giant pancakes, hot dogs, and a variety of other foods.
The animated movie features the voices of many well known actors including Anna Faris as Sam Sparks, Flint Lockwood’s love, James Caan as Tim Lockwood, Flint’s father, and Mr. T as Earl Devereaux, the town security guard. However, the cutest and funniest character is one of few words, but hilarious animation, Flint’s sidekick monkey Steve, voiced by Neil Patrick Harris.
Although the movie is inspired by a children’s book, teenagers and adult audiences can find as much enjoyment as the 10-year-olds filling up the theater seats. Sony strategically includes some adult humor for those parents accompanying their children or for those high school kids who secretly miss the Disney movies of their past and wish to hold on to the memories of their childhood.
Despite its storybook inspiration, directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller had very little to work with. Thus, if you go see the movie, do not expect to see the exact replication of the 1978 book’s plot. In fact, the two are quite different.
The movie centers around Flint who invents this machine, which converts water into food, while the book focuses on two children listening to their grandfather tell the tale of the town of Chewandswallow where food falls from the sky. In the book, storms force the people to leave the town and adapt to the new world without food falling from the sky.
It may be because of these major plot changes that some parts of the movie fell short. If it were not for the random, yet adorable remarks of the gummy bear obsessed monkey Steve and the great animation of Sony Pictures, viewed in 3D for the first few weeks of the film’s release, these plot holes may have been more imposing on the viewer.
Overall, the cute and quirky animated film is great for all types of audiences. The movie is perfect for the younger audiences and adults seeking a relaxing and comedic 81 minutes.