Generally a fun film, with a refreshingly original plot.

Rating: 6/10 (11 June 2010)

The most impressive thing about Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs is that its plot is refreshingly original. Hollywood cartoons of late have been predictable, bland and boringly alike. It has been left to others – most significantly the Japanese – to produce animated movies with any kind of vision or innovation about them. So, it comes as a huge relief that Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs manages to tell a new, wacky, totally off-kilter story with a fair degree of verve. The film still has some weaknesses – hence the score of 6 – but at least the storyline is not one of them.
Eccentric child Flint (voice of Bill Hader) wants more than anything to be a great inventor, even though most of his projects end in disaster. His father Tim (voice of James Caan) is a more practical, down-to-earth type who thinks his son should stop dreaming of wacky inventions and get a proper job. Tim arranges for Flint to start working in his fishing tackle store, but Flint still harbours dreams of building a revolutionary machine that can create food by converting water molecules into edible products. Flint builds his machine, but a freak accident results in it being launched into the clouds. Pretty soon it is reacting with the moisture in the clouds, causing crazy storms in which food falls from the sky rather than raindrops. To begin with, everyone finds these culinary storms funky and exciting, but soon bigger and bigger objects are falling from the heavens. Steaks that crush houses, burgers that flatten towns – Flint realises that his food-creating machine is out of control, creating pieces of food so big they could soon destroy the world! Aided by pretty journalist Sam Sparks (voice of Anna Faris), Flint races to save the planet from the massive food storms that jeopardise the future of human existence.
First of all, what do I like about this movie? Already I've said quite a lot about the inventive plot. Besides that the voice acting is generally entertaining, with particular kudos going to James Caan and Mr. T, both of whom create memorably eccentric and funny characters. The animation is pretty dazzling too, with vibrant colours and effects.. What don't I like about the film? Perhaps the biggest let-down is that in the end the film falls back onto the disappointingly conventional and sentimental theme of father-son bonding. After all the imagination and invention that has gone into the story, it seems a shame that the makers then bring their resolution down to yet another example of cinematic moralising, as the dysfunctional father and son "find" each other. Also, the film's climax goes on and on and on, rather out-staying its welcome and resulting in a sense of overkill. On the whole though Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs is a fun film, definitely above average and definitely worth watching if only to admire its originality. It's just a shame it succumbs to preachy moralising at the end.