In 2009, Sony Pictures Animation’s adaptation of the classic children’s story, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, was served-up to moviegoers, complete with an updated twist. Actually, it was a major overhaul. In fact, the only thing the popular book and the movie script had in common was the title. But the energetic food-fest about a young inventor with big dreams became a huge hit for the studio, grossing $243M worldwide which, naturally, called for a sequel.
This latest addition to the menu, “Cloudy 2”, offers-up a new adventure for scientist Flint Lockwood (voiced by Bill Hader), weather girl Sam Sparks (Anna Faris), cameraman Manny (Benjamin Bratt), Baby Brent (Andy Samberg), Flint’s father Tim (James Caan), officer Earl (Terry Crews, who takes over for Mr. T) and the lovable monkey Steve (Neil Patrick Harris). In the original, food fell from the sky. This time the food comes alive!
Following a brief recap of the previous film (which I normally hate, but didn’t bother me here), the plot picks-up right where it left off: The gang has just saved the island of Swallow Falls (and the entire world) by shutting down Flint’s Diatonic Super Mutating Dynamic Food Replicator, which turned water into food, but got a little out of control. However, all the giant pizzas, burgers, pancakes, etc. are still on the island. A company named Live Corp., led by Flint’s TV idol, CEO genius-scientist Chester V (Will Forte), volunteers to do the clean-up job of the island. Chester V is a cross between tech giants Steve Jobs and Bill Gates, as he tries to be hip, complete with sneakers and orange vest, and The Simpsons’ Mr. Burns in the way he treat his thousands of employees like dirt.
The residents of Swallow Falls must evacuate their homes while the clean-up takes place and move to San Fran Jose, CA (nice joke). Chester V convinces Flint to give up his plans to start his own company and join him at Live Corp. But the entire gang will soon have to return to the island to stop the “foodimals” from possibly escaping and taking over the world.
Right now (and with apologizes to Pixar, Disney and DreamWorks) Sony Pictures Animation is the most consistent of all the major animation studios when it comes to delivering amazing looking films with stories and scripts to match. And they’ve done it again with “Cloudy 2”. The SPA animators are allowed the freedom to break all the rules – especially when it comes to movements of the human characters. The pace of the action is practically out-of-control but it’s balanced nicely by some quiet, thoughtful moments that you may not even realize are there. And at its heart is a story simple enough for kids to follow and enjoy, jammed with jokes and clever references for adults. Credit to directors Cody Cameron and Kris Pearn for being able to mix all these ingredients together and produce something deliciously wacky and unique.
The food creatures in “Cloudy 2” have great names such as Cheespider, Meatballrus, Hippotatomus and Shrimpanzee. The creative meetings must have been hilarious. And the breakout star turns-out a young strawberry named Berry. The animation itself achieves all three Bs: bright, bold and breathtaking. There’s an amazing scene, when the characters first return to the island, that’s an awe-inspiring homage to “Jurassic Park”. Chester V is a solid new character, though he’s in the film a little too much. There aren’t a lot of surprises in the script, but when there are Watermelophants, a Tacodile Supreme on the loose and a Leek in the boat to keep everyone busy, that’s okay.
“Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” is rated PG for some mild rude humor. It’s appropriate for kids 7 and up. “Cloudy 2” doesn’t provide the laugh-out-loud moments of “Despicable Me 2”, but like an extra large ice cream cone, it keeps you smiling from start to finish. And sprinkled in for the kids (and adults) are some important lessons about loyalty, respect and friendship.
On The Official LCJ Report Card, “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2” gets a B+. Definitely see it, but be sure to eat first or you’ll be sitting through the entire movie dying for a Tacodile Supreme.