The Angry Birds Movie Review

About five or six years ago I read an article that said an Angry Birds movie was in development. Anyone I mentioned this to refused to believe it because the market was already flooded with merchandise based on the popular casual gaming app and no one wanted to see more of it. Additionally, because making a story based on launching spherically shaped birds at building blocks with a sling shot doesn't sound like it has much story potential. Well, The Angry Birds Movie (2016) did finally hit theaters and it was every bit as weak, ridiculous, and unwanted as everyone assumed it would be.

Flightless birds lead a mostly happy existence, except for Red (Jason Sudeikis), who just can't get past the daily annoyances of life. His temperament leads him to anger management class, where he meets fellow misfits Chuck (Josh Gad) and Bomb (Danny McBride). Red becomes even more agitated when his feathered brethren welcome green pigs lead by Leonard (Bill Hader) to their island paradise. As the swine begin to get under his skin, Red joins forces with Chuck and Bomb to investigate the real reason behind their mysterious arrival. When it is discovered that the pigs steal all the eggs from Bird Island, it's time for the birds to get angry, fight back, and save their children. But the only weapon they've got is a gigantic slingshot the pigs gave them as a gift of good will.

The Angry Birds Movie is, of course, based on the app of the same name. Since it was released in 2009, the Angry Birds game has been downloaded more than 3 billion times across all versions and platforms of mobile devices. Angry Birds has become a big merchandise brand name, creating not only several variations of the popular app game, but also plush toys, board games, t-shirts, candies, a line of Hot Wheels cars, LEGO and K'nex sets, sports equipment, pet toys, and more. With so many products already available, it was only a matter of time before a movie was produced. The Angry Birds Movie did feel a lot like both a celebration of the game and a 97 minute commercial for the game and existing merchandise. Of course, there had to be even more merchandise produced specific to the movie itself. The Angry Birds Movie really was a cash grab, and it wasn't even a vaguely amusing cash grab like the Minions movie.

On the one hand, The Angry Birds Movie doesn't take itself too seriously. That's a very good thing, given the ridiculousness of its premise. But at the same time it doesn't take the ridiculous premise seriously enough to take advantage of the potential humor. Jokes often fall flat as they simply draw attention to how weird a situation is. For example, when the anger management instructor is launched via the slingshot, she literally drops fireballs out of her butt onto the pig city below. That happens to be what this character does in the game, but it's given no explanation in the movie. They could have made a joke about spicy burritos, have her be embarrassed when her lady-like demeanor is compromised, or just about anything, but instead they had Red quip "Well, how about that? She can shoot fireballs out of her butt." That was the joke. Many jokes are as bland and fall flat like this. There are a number of bird and pig related puns, most of which I thought felt forced and were disappointing as a connoisseur of delightfully terrible puns. There are a few amusing nods to the game, such as in the opening scene, when Red asks two birds what they rate the birthday cake he delivers, he asks how many stars out of three. This is a reference to the game; the highest score you can get is three stars.

The humor was disappointing, and the writing in general was pretty weak, too. Rescuing eggs of course makes sense, but none of the character's motives beyond that makes much sense. They just do what they do without much of a rhyme or reason behind it. The aforementioned incident of Red delivering a cake had Red arrive late. We're not given a reason for him to be late, and the recipients of the cake accuse him being lazy, tired, or of sleeping in. Nothing suggests that these might have been the case, and Red is established as being a responsible, if grumpy, individual. The reasons for events happening and the motives for why characters act the way they do are left unexplored and unexplained, making the story and characters very weak and flimsy. I realize this is a children's movie, but there are much better children's movies you could take your children to see. The Peanuts Movie, for example, was outstanding. The Angry Birds Movie, is so poor in quality that I can't imagine anyone who is not ten years old or younger enjoying it much. There are a series of 2-D animated shorts based off of the Angry Birds game which have far superior writing than this full length movie.

The Angry Birds Movie is to date the best film adapted from an app. This is a pretty poor endorsement, as I cannot think of a second example of such a phenomena. The story is predictably weak, the humor frequently falls flat, the characters are shallow and have nebulous motivation, and the movie drags on for longer than needed. The Animation is decent enough and the all star cast was great, apart from the lousy script they had to work with. I realize I'm not the target audience here, but Author C. S. Lewis once said, “A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest.” I believe the same can be said about children's movies; a lot of Disney films are enjoyed enthusiastically by adults. The Angry Birds Movie is mostly an annoying commercial for products you likely already own. This is not worth seeing in theaters, wait for it on home video if you must. If you really want an Angry Birds experience, you're better off spending movie ticket money on the entire collection of Angry Birds ads-free game apps and spending the evening playing those on your Smartphone.

Is there another casual gaming app that might make a good movie? Comment below and let me know!

The Peanuts Movie Review

The Peanuts comic strips never were my favorite, I'd always read Calvin and Hobbes or Garfield first in the funny papers. The many animated Peanuts TV specials were cute and certainly had their charm, but were hardly things I'd go out of my way to see. When I heard about The Peanuts Movie (2015) and that it was being CGI animated in 3D, the only response I could think of was "Good Grief." But then I saw the trailer and got to see the animation in action, as well as a hint at the storyline. Only then did I become excited about it. Not only did it turn out to be really good, but it held so true to its source material that you'd think that Peanuts cartoonist, Chales M. Shultz, had a hand in making it!

Life always seems complicated for good ol' Charlie Brown (Noah Schnapp), the boy who always tries his best against seemingly impossible odds. When the Little Red-Haired Girl moves into his neighborhood, Charlie Brown develops a crush on her. He is hoping to shed his former reputation and reinvent himself as a more confident person, and start over with a clean slate in the eyes of the Little Red-Haired Girl. Meanwhile, his best friend Snoopy takes to writing an epic adventure in a fantasy world. As a World War I flying ace, the lovable beagle pursues his nemesis, the Red Baron, while also trying to win the heart of a beautiful poodle named Fifi (Kristin Chenoweth).

 I cannot speak highly enough about the animation. I really was expecting a bunch of creative or even crazy camera shots and 3D gimmicks to showcase how diligent the computer animators were while making the movie. Boy was I wrong. There was a great deal of flat staging used in The Peanuts Movie, which is to say most camera angles and movements were eye-level with the characters and were flush with the background. This made nearly any given shot resemble a 2D panel in the comic strip or cartoon TV special. Furthermore, while the animation was smooth, it wasn't fluid. This was intentional though; some of the subtle jerkiness in animation was meant to emulate the subtle jerkiness and movement of the 2D animation that was so beloved in the old TV specials. There were even the lines added here and there like what was done in the comics and TV specials, such as the dotted lines that follows Woodstock's erratic flying, lines following a character who dashes off screen to illustrate their speed, or squiggly lines above a characters head to suggest dizziness. Yes, it was digitally animated; but the brilliant lighting, color scheme, and camera work made the animation resemble the classic feel of the comics and TV specials and the similarities are positively uncanny. It's almost as if you were watching an old Charlie Brown cartoon with moving puff stickers or something. It's difficult to fully express what the animation is like. Take a moment to watch the trailer here to get a good look for yourself:

As is the case with most of the Peanuts storylines, there isn't a villain or an antagonist to defeat. It's just a bunch of kids, experiencing life and learning from their experiences. Charlie Brown is a guy who, in the face of repeated failure, picks himself back up and tries again. Truly, that is no small task. Everyday qualities of perseverance, to pick yourself back up with a positive attitude, are more admirable and down to earth than seeing an action hero save the world. The story here feels very real and is something that people can relate to, regardless of their age. It's not a struggle against a bad guy, it's a struggle of self respect and improvement. Nevertheless, there is a sense of urgency and finite time available that gives the movie a bit of an exciting edge. The Peanuts Movie remains as sweet and innocent as ever while still being relatable to a broad age range.

One of my favorite scenes is the opening scene where we're introduced to the whole cast. Because of the robust number of Peanuts characters, the movie didn't need to introduce any new ones. The opening scene shows us things like Sally trying to flirt with Linus (her "Sweet Babboo"), Charlie Brown is thwarted by the Kite-Eating Tree, Lucy calls Charlie Brown a blockhead, the kids go ice skating, and Snoopy tries to run off with Linus's blanket among other familiar bits. Throughout the movie we see other common Peanuts gags, such as Charlie Brown trying to play baseball, Schroeder playing the piano and appreciating Beethoven, Snoopy imagining himself as a WWI flying ace and writing a novel, references to The Great Pumpkin, hanging out next to a brick wall, and Lucy's Psychiatry Booth (my favorite). We came to the end of the movie and hadn't had Lucy hold a football for Charlie Brown to kick, but even that was included in one of the two mid-credit scenes. This movie has essentially everything that makes Peanuts what it is; it feels like a classic Peanuts cartoon, leaving nothing out.

The Peanuts Movie is a terrific big-screen version of the classic comics and TV specials that should satisfy Peanuts fans and generate new ones. This movie feels familiar, even cozy. I never was a big fan of Peanuts, but this movie feels like the return of an old friend. It perfectly pays homage to its source material, including everything that gives Peanuts its charm, and adding nothing to detract from it. The Peanuts Movie works because it's simple. At no point was it trying to sell a toy, sell comic books, or be any cooler than it actually is. Adults will absolutely find The Peanuts Movie delightful and charming, but the comedy and message will still ring true for kids. It's not just an all-ages crowd-pleaser, this would be the perfect first feature for a preschooler. I firmly believe that Charles M. Schultz would have been immensely pleased with this movie. This is worth seeing in theaters if you've ever enjoyed Peanuts to even the smallest degree. In fact, I'd encourage you to do so, it's the kind of film we want to encourage studios to keep making.

What's a newspaper comic strip you would like to see a movie made out of with the love and care that The Peanuts Movie was? I'd LOVE to see a good Calvin and Hobbes movie. Comment below and tell me what you think!