Sony's CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS Rains Supreme!

Jim here. Wow. I took in CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS last night and let me tell you the movie exceeded my expectations. And yes, Pixar should take note of just how far Sony Pictures Animation has come. Sure a few minor rough edges, but very minor. CLOUDY is a feast for the eyes.

Of course the basic premise is of a young inventor (Flint) who takes it upon himself (not initially on purpose) to save his economically dying town by introducing falling food for tourism. Of course things get out of control and the size of the morsels keep getting bigger and bigger. Talk about fodder for 3D!

And the 3D is done extremely well. In one superb sequence, Flint realizes he must get across town to his lab in order to reverse the oncoming food downpour - and the obstacles that are placed before him are all shot in wondrous 3D. That scene makes the movie in my mind.

Similarly, the Jello scene is memorable. Hilarious really. Cannonballs and belly flops into Jello make for a completely different results! :-)

While the movie is made with children in mind, there are plenty of adult gags to laugh at - like when Steve the monkey is fighting Gummy Bears and strikes a karate blow to reach in and pull out a gummy heart - very cool. Kids won't think it is a heart though, so still very kid friendly. The only scenes that could be considered more intense for kids is when Flint goes bonkers running around hitting people in the face with ice cream snowballs (a little overboard) and when roasted chickens start attacking - and EATING alive the humans - that last scene (and some language in the movie) probably earned the PG rating.

So I give CLOUDY an 8 out of 10. There is a great father - son message in it too. Take your kids to it (I would say 8 and over) - you will be glad you did. A great way to introduce 3D to them and keeps you entertained too. Oh and it is easily tops in the box office with an estimated $8.1 million on Friday alone. The ~$100 million production should top $30 million for the weekend.

Thank you to Empire Theatres for the screening.