Bright with a Chance of Excellence

While I can’t say I’ve actually ever encountered Judi and Ron Barrett's 1978 children's book that inspired this film, I can attest to the fact that this CG-animated masterpiece hits all the right notes when it comes to competing in the arena established by companies like Pixar and DreamWorks.

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is set on the island of Swallow Falls, a small community with an economy fueled by the sardine industry.  In isolation from the outside world, the now economically depressed island struggles to stay afloat, and finds themselves relying on the only thing they have (sardines) to survive.

Inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader), along with his talking monkey colleague Steve (voiced by Neil Patrick Harris) hope to change the sardine-based world around them with an invention unlike any the world has known: a nanotechnology converter capable of rearranging water molecules into any kind of food imaginable.

A first for poor Flint, this device actually seems to work.  The trouble is that when it accidentally gets rocketed into the stratosphere in the presence of former nerd turned news-reporter hottie Sam Sparks (voiced by Anna Faris), the very weather itself is suddenly quite unstable!

Before long everything from burger and hot dogs drizzle to pancake downpours and ice cream snowstorms begin to make their way from the rolling purple clouds. Flint goes from outcast to local hero in one fell swoop, but the fame pales in comparison to all he really seeks: the respect of his gruff tackle shop owning, unibrow sporting dad (James Caan).

The film works on just about every conceivable level: Fantastic visuals with unrivaled lighting effects mean the kiddies will be glued to the flat screen, an intelligent screenplay by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller that offers exceptional humor that even adults can enjoy, and a cast that never misses a beat (Bruce Campbell as Mayor Shelbourne, Mr. T as Officer Deveraux, and “Baby" Brent done by the infectious Andy Samberg), you come away with a project that gives absolutely nothing up to Pixar or DreamWorks.

Pacing is quite brisk, even for a movie primarily targeted at children and wastes very little time setting things up.  Best of all it manages to do something all animated features aspire toward but few achieve: It establishes characters that are easy to care about!

Couple this to the fact that there are lessons scattered about on many levels that will reveal themselves as the viewer matures mentally and the lasting appeal of having this one in your collection becomes clear.

I was able to enjoy this one in a room full of individuals ranging from preschool age to retirement and just about all intervals in between and can attest to the fact that all involved were intensely connected and frequently laughed out loud at the various levels of humor contained within.

In all, this is a highly recommended animated feature that literally offers up something for nearly everyone.  Sony Imageworks has yet to establish a presence that threatens the big boys of the industry but Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs is certainly not to blame for that reality.  In fact, I could go as far as to say that it does an incredible job at narrowing the gap.