Animation Celebration Saturday - Smallfoot

Warner Bros, 2018
Voices of Channing Tatum, Zendaya, James Corden, and Common
Directed by Karey Kirpatrick
Music and Lyrics by Karey and Wayne Kirpatrick

This is another animated film that sort of passed me by. I'd vaguely heard of it when it came out in theaters last year, but I didn't really know much about it until the DVD showed up at a local library, and I had no idea it was a musical. Honestly, the idea of a curious yeti and a human making contact and trying to teach others about their respective kinds is already kind of strange. How does the music fit in? Let's head to a mountain surrounded by mists in the Himalayas and find out...

The Story: Migo (Tatum) lives in a village of yetis that's isolated by mists and clouds. The village is governed by strict rules written on rocks that tell how they should live and what truths they should abide by. Migo wants nothing more than to succeed his father Dorgle (Danny DiVito) as the one who shoots himself into a gong that they believe will make the sun rise.

One day, while admiring the chief stonekeeper's daughter Meechee (Zendaya), he misses the gong and lands way over the mountain and past the clouds. He discovers a "smallfoot" (human), Percy Patterson (Corden), who was trying to find footage for a nature show to make him a big shot again. Migo tries to tell the other yeti, but no one believes him, and he's exiled. One small group of yeti do think he's telling the truth - the SES (Smallfoot Existence Society), lead by Meechee and a group of outcasts. They encourage him to find Percy again, and then bring him to the village. The stonekeeper (Common) believes Percy to be dangerous and, revealing the truth about why they hide to Migo, tells him to lie to the other yeti. Percy, however, is growing deathly ill in the bitter cold. When Meechee goes into the valley to return him to safety, Migo and the others go after her.

The Animation: While the shivery, icy blue backdrops of the frozen Himalayas are pretty well-rendered, to the point where you feel like you could jump in a pile of snow yourself, the characters look a bit strange. The small, oval eyes are a little goofy on the Yetis, but they don't really look right on the humans, making them look a tad creepy.

The Song and Dance: This was better than I thought it would be. The moral about the importance of curiosity and questioning societal norms is quite timely at the moment. I also appreciate that they're handled at least a little more subtly than, say, Uglydolls handled its "everyone is different" message. I also like that there's no real villains. The conflict is more a tragic misunderstanding between groups than a conflict between a hero and a bad guy.

Favorite Number: "Wonderful Life" was the hit here, and it gets a number worthy of it as Meechee introduces Migo to the delights of the outside world. There's some gorgeous animation here, especially when she's showing him butterflies in a cave. Corden gets a hilarious version of Queen's "Under Pressure" as he explains breathlessly why he's desperate to get back into the spotlight.

What I Don't Like: While well-meaning and a bit better than the similar Uglydolls, the plot is still cliched as all get-out. Migo, and to a lesser degree Meechee, are bland hero characters, and we don't really see enough of Percy to get an impression of him, beyond his desire to grasp the spotlight. The new songs other than "Wonderful Life" are also fairly forgettable.

The Big Finale: If you have younger kids who may appreciate the music and characters, they'll likely get a kick out of this snowy tale of an unusual friendship.

Home Media: As a recent movie, this is easily available in all formats.

DVD
Blu-Ray
Amazon Prime (Buy Only)