Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs

 

• Released Internationally on 18/09/09
• Released in Malta by KRS on 18/09/09

 

Showing in Real3D at Empire Cinemas, Buġibba and in 2D everywhere else

In a nutshell

Based on the children’s book, this gourmet computer-animated disaster movie blends comedy, science-fiction and drama to bring an impressive array of great new characters to the screen.

Sardines

Like all great fairytales, this one kicks off in a quaint imaginary town – a seaside haven on a tiny island underneath the ‘A’ of ‘Atlantic’. The town thrives on the sardine industry, and every family business is built on sardines. Then one day, the world at large realises that ‘sardines are super gross’, and suddenly the future of the town looks fishy. Enter Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader, Pineapple Express, Tropic Thunder).

Crackpot

Flint has dreamed of being an inventor since he was a few feet tall, and his mind is always set on the next great idea. Not deterred by the failure of most of his ideas, he sets his sights on saving his hometown with the invention of a machine that, to put it simply, makes food out of water. Flint is a wonderful character that draws from fictional inventors we’ve seen over the decades – complete with zany haircut, lab coat, lack of social skills and the ultimate back-yard laboratory which could rival Dexter’s.

Weather

Over on mainland USA, aspiring weather girl Sam Sparks (Anna Faris, Scary Movie, Observe and Report), lands the job of covering the worthless news story of the opening of this tiny town’s ‘Sardine Land’ theme park, but she gets more than she bargained for when shortly after arriving she witnesses the unintentional launch of Flint’s latest invention into the atmosphere. As the two, who have more in common than initially apparent, meet, it starts raining burgers.

Food glorious food

What follows is a wonderful feast of animation, as the town is whipped into a feeding frenzy over Lockwood’s invention and its resulting weather phenomena. From his lab Flint takes everyone’s orders and the town is covered in favourite foods three times a day, at mealtimes. But gluttony and chaos risk destroying the town, and in true disaster-movie style the entire world is soon at stake.

Quite a character

Endearing as the main couple may be, they are nearly outdone by the impressive host of supporting characters. After endless sequels in the computer-animation field, it’s wonderful to find something so fresh and new, with so many great new faces. Flint’s father, who epitomises the strong and silent type, manages to look hilarious and yet be the emotional anchor of Flint’s adventures. He is brought to life by the voice talent of James Caan (The Godfather, Mickey Blue Eyes). Equally funny is the local police chief Earl Devereaux, voiced to perfection by none other than Mr. T (of The A-Team fame), a Johnny Bravo-type cop who is convinced that Flint is up to no good. The greedy and manipulative mayor is given ample pantomime malevolence by Bruce Campbell (Evil Dead, Spider-man). Last but not least, the undistinguished cameraman Manny (Benjamin Bratt, The Woodsman, Miss Congeniality) rises from obscurity in the finale to provide some of the humorous highpoints.

In the end

With the exponentially increasing output of computer-animated films, it’s inevitable that some miss-hits wouldn’t reach the lofty standards set by Toy Story and friends. Thankfully, this film manages to be up to scratch in every department – the animation is a joy to behold, the story is crazy but not without heart, and the laughs are frequent. It may be loads of nonsense, but it’s great fun.

 

 

Trailer:

http://www.apple.com/trailers/sony_pictures/cloudywithachanceofmeatballs/