Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2: A Tasty Sequel, But Lacking the Original’s Zest
A visually stunning and occasionally amusing animated sequel that, overall, falls short of the brilliance of its predecessor.
Following the incident where Flint Lockwood’s invention, a machine that turns water into food, overwhelmed Swallow Falls with edible creations, the island’s inhabitants were evacuated. The cleanup operation was entrusted to the legendary inventor Chester V, Flint’s idol and the head of a high-tech corporation. However, even his team of researchers and inventors couldn’t navigate the island’s infestation of “foodimals” – mutant creatures blending the characteristics of food and animals. Therefore, Chester tasks Flint, his newest employee, with returning home to disable the food-producing machine once and for all. Naturally, Flint’s friends and family join him on this mission to battle spider-burgers and potato-potamuses.
Fun Fact: After voicing Earl in the original, Mr. T of “Rocky 3” fame declined to return for the sequel, leading to a redesign of the character to resemble Terry Crews, the new voice actor.
Released in 2009, Sony Pictures Animation’s “Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs” wasn’t quite a masterpiece on par with the best recent animated films. However, it came very close. Charming and funny characters, an imaginative plot, epic scope, dynamic action, vibrant visuals, a plethora of jokes and gags, and occasional moments of genuine heart – it had it all. It deserved more than its $243 million worldwide gross (on a $100 million budget). Although, one could understand viewers’ hesitation to fully trust Sony Animation after competent but less memorable films like “Open Season” and “Surf’s Up.”
Easter Egg: When Sam ventures onto Swallow Falls, her outfit is a nod to Dr. Ellie Sattler from “Jurassic Park.”
The Sequel Dilemma
Unfortunately, the creators of “Cloudy…” seemed to lack complete confidence themselves, crafting a film where, by the end credits, the positive characters had resolved all their issues. Flint’s father embraced his son as an inventor and reconciled with him, meteorologist Sam admitted she was a “nerd,” and the arrogant bully Brent proved himself a hero. While all this was great, where could the story go from there? How do you create a sequel when all the characters are happy, friendly, and content? In soap operas, someone might die or lose their memory at such moments, but that would be too dark for animation, especially for a sequel to a comedy.
New Creative Team, Familiar Territory
With the original creators, Phil Lord and Chris Miller, moving on to live-action films (they directed “21 Jump Street”), a new team of writers and directors had to solve the puzzle they left behind. They introduced a new villain, created a minor personal conflict (Flint is ready to destroy the mutants, while Sam doubts their harmfulness), and, after a visually impressive but ultimately dull half-hour detour in Chester’s corporate office, sent the heroes back to do what they already did in the first film’s finale. Only this time, instead of a flash drive, Flint tries to disable the machine with a smart card. Variety!
Visual Feast, Narrative Lite
Thus, instead of the psychological and eventful richness of the first film, we get a lovers’ quarrel (“A lovers’ tiff is just for fun!”), forty minutes of sometimes entertaining wandering through the jungle, and a larger but less intense finale than in the original. Brent and Officer Earl are only included for a few jokes (was it worth dragging them to the island for that?), and Sam never demonstrates her meteorological knowledge. Frankly, the script for “Revenge of the GMOs” feels more like a direct-to-video sequel than a fully-fledged and equal continuation.
Visually, however, “Cloudy… 2” is on par with the original. The film’s artists created a vast array of incredible “foodimals,” transformed Swallow Falls into a prehistoric jungle, designed an entire city (a caricatured version of San Francisco), and a ultra-modern office building for the opening scenes. The film’s visuals are impressive and captivating. However, in the first film, the vibrant colors and the animators’ imagination were accompanied by inventiveness, heart, wit, and other virtues of “Cloudy…”. The sequel can only boast the visuals, hyperactive characters (to match the hyperactive young viewers), frequent but rarely successful attempts at humor, a charming, wide-eyed strawberry, and jabs at several famous businessmen, including Steve Jobs (Chester V is a composite portrait of them). As a famous cartoon character once said, “That’s not enough!”