Movie Review: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

It was only a few months ago that we started taking Gus to the AMC Sensory Friendly films geared toward kids with Sensory Integration Disorder. This past weekend, the rainy weather nudged us to try something new for the kids: a 3D movie without the sound modifications. I was a little nervous, especially at $42 for the 4 of us (Remember when a movie was a cheap family outing?) that we'd last 15 minutes and would have to leave because of the noise or the images or just because we were having an 'off' day. Each of the kids represented separate concerns. Aside from the sensory issues, we worried that Gus might not be able to sit still, and that both of them would be scared, and not just by giant food flying out of the screen. Fortunately, they both sat through the film like champs and loved it!

Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs tells the story of a genius, misfit inventor named Flint Lockwood. His only friend is his pet monkey, Steve (voiced by Neil Patrick Harris). The only person who understands Flint is his mother; to everyone else on the sardine-fishing-industry island where he lives, he's a huge nuisance with his weird inventions. Within the first 2 minutes of the movie, I was hooked. Could I possibly relate to the kid onscreen any more than I did? Not likely. Gus was completely still and focused as well. (I wonder if he felt the same connection to the main character.) After his mother (who is only in the film during the first few minutes) gives him his first real lab coat, Flint wants to help his town and gain acceptance with his inventions, the latest which transforms water into food so that the people can finally vary their sardine diets. Things start out well enough, but due to greed and overindulgence, go horribly wrong.

The film quickly went from sadly moving to side-splitting funny. It was very light on really crass humor, which I appreciated. The little inside jokes were great as well, like Flint using the old Simon electronic game as the control panel to his underground lab. The 2 leads, Bill Hader and Anna Faris, were perfect, and some of the supporting performances were excellent as well. My favorites were Mr. T. as the town cop, who was more versatile in the role than I ever would have given him credit for, and James Caan as Flint's unibrowed, laconic dad. One scene with Tim, Flint's father, the town tackle-shop owner, when he tries to send an email was especially hilarious.

There was a little bit of awkward romance between Flint and aspiring weather reporter, Sam, but not so much as to make it inappropriate for a six-year-old. There were some mildly scary images, but the one that got MM worried the most when one character experienced an anaphylactic peanut allergy and swelled up like Aunt Marge in the 3^rd Harry Potter film. It upset her because both DH and his dad have peanut allergies, but she didn't wake up with any nightmares, so I think we explained the situation well enough. The noise from the action sequences was very tolerable, and the 3D effects didn't seem to bother the children at all. The only time Gus got distracted from the movie was when he got thirsty and I ran out for water and popcorn.

Overall, I'd rate Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 4 out of 4 stars. To quote Gus, "They hit a home run with that one!" Go see it!

*poster image borrowed according to fair use from Columbia Pictures

AMC’s Sensory Friendly Films and Monsters vs. Aliens

Image borrowed according to fair use from Paramount Pictures

A while back it came to my attention that some theaters offered what they called sensory friendly films, but at the time I didn't pay much attention to it. We've only taken our kids to the movies very rarely, mostly because there aren't that many movies we've been interested for them to see. But Monsters vs. Aliens looked a little too good to pass up. We decided to try to take them, but we were concerned about loud explosions bothering both kids, not just Gus. They seemed so excited to see the movie that I decided to do a little research.

It turns out that AMC Theaters partnered with the Autism Society of America to offer these sensory friendly films for kids on the autism spectrum. The films are shown at certain times of the month at select participating theaters. If there isn't a participating theater nearby, you can contact AMC – they might try to change that. The nearest theater to us was about an hour and a half away, near my sister, so we made a day of it. We packed the kids up early in the morning, went out for a big breakfast, and then met my sister and nephew for lunch after the movie.

So modifications did the theater offer? We got lucky that we called for the schedule when we did because this theater offers the accommodations the first Saturday of every month at the first showing. This is beneficial for two reasons: no crowds and matinee rates (we always prefer to pay matinee rates in case Gus doesn't make it through the entire movie). Once the movie started, the lights went down, but not to total darkness. And the best part - which made the movie more enjoyable even for me – the sound was turned down. It was great! The movie was not shown in 3D, which I was grateful for because I was worried about it being too overwhelming for Gus. He got a little fidgety, but not to the extent that he wanted to leave; he just needed to move. No one complained about his movement or when he made comments to the screen. The last time he watched an entire movie in the theater was probably when we went to see Curious George 3 years ago. It was a very nice time.

Was Monsters vs. Aliens worth the 3 hours round trip that we spent in the car? Totally worth it! I've come to have a high level of trust in Dreamworks productions. It was exciting and fun for both kids and parents (there were some hilarious pop culture references) without being crude or obnoxious. In other words, it was just our speed. I highly recommend it!

Have you experienced any sensory friendly films? If so, how did you enjoy it? If not, would you be interested in trying one out?