Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg have given us a number of hilarious flicks over the past decade, from their teen sex comedy Superbad, to their post-apocalyptic farce This is the End, the duo are responsible for arguably some of the funniest films in recent years. Their latest outing Sausage Party is no exception and sees the duo take the absolute piss out of the world of animated movies. Directed by Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon, Sausage Party sees Rogen as a sausage named Frank who sets out on a quest to discover the truth about what lies beyond the supermarket where he and his fellow foodstuff reside. Don't be fooled by the films friendly looking animation however, this film is just as hilariously crude as Rogen and Goldberg's other features and is packed full of profanity and innuendo. But surprisingly Sausage Party has a lot more to offer than its humour and makes some bold statements about some of today's most topical issues.
While the animation in Sausage Party may not live up to the likes of Pixar, it does have some really clever and memorable character design. The ways in which the inanimate objects and food are transformed into anthropomorphic beings are truly brilliant. Some of these include Teresa del Taco (Salma Hayek), a lesbian taco shell who has a thing for Franks hotdog bun girlfriend Brenda (Kristen Wiig), and the wheelchair-bound Gum (Scott Underwood), a Stephen Hawking-esque character. Not only are these characters memorable in appearance but are also complimented by an extremely talented voice cast. My personal favourites were Edward Norton who is almost unrecognizable as a Jewish bagel who talks like Woody Allen, and the Middle Eastern Karim Abdul Lavash (David Krumholtz), the two argue relentlessly throughout the film, I honestly could listen to them argue for hours. The entire cast all carry out their roles very well and each bring a sense of personality to their respective characters. Never before will you route so hard for a sausage.
As expected from a Rogen/Goldberg collaboration, Sausage Party is painfully hilarious. If, like myself, you're a fan of puns, then you're in for a real treat as every scene in this film has at least one. From casual play on words to visual puns, this film really does set its phasers to pun in some really clever ways, also it arguably has the best use of a Meatloaf song in any film ever. The only thing that matches these puns is the abundance of innuendo in this movie, I mean a sausage looks phallic enough as it is and this film really takes advantage of that. Without spoiling much, there is constant mention of Frank and Brenda using 'only the tip' and how he wishes to be between her buns etc. Any possible food-related innuendo is used in this film. To top it all off, the films climax contains one of the most bizarre sequences in any film I've ever seen, I don't want to spoil it but prepare for a lot more than just mere innuendo. The film really does take any opportunity to throw in whatever puns or innuendo it can, and while at times it does feel like a bit too much, they'll tickle your funny bone regardless.
While a film about talking food does sound like a dumb concept, Sausage Party is anything but stupid. The films story is quite clever and very thought-provoking, the whole plot involves Frank questioning the beliefs of his fellow food who anticipate being chosen by 'Gods' and taken outside the supermarket to 'the great beyond'. The story is basically one big metaphor for questioning organised religion, but it also contains some really interesting messages about acceptance and going against cultural norms. From the Jewish Bagel and Middle-Eastern lavash representing the Israel/Palestine conflict to Teresa del Taco 'coming out', there are a number of messages in this film that make reference to some of today's most important issues, none of which are subtle. However, instead of straight out mocking these issues like some films would, it instead makes out that it's okay to question things like religion and sexuality and I'm really impressed at how such delicate subjects were handled by Rogen and Goldberg. For a film that relies so heavily on puns and sexual references it was nice to see it have some deeper messages that really set it apart from some of the other contemporary comedies.
As with any film however, it does have some downsides. Naturally the excessive innuendo can get old after a while and at times can feel a bit forced and juvenile, the film never takes a break when it comes to delivering punch lines which can be a disadvantage at times. Along with this, there are times when it does go from funny to borderline offensive, I'm not one who's easily offended but even I thought some of the racially oriented jokes were a bit much. Another downside is the films villain, a Douche played by Nick Kroll (not his Parks and Recreation character but an actual douche). While his voice acting is great, I feel like his character had no real reason to be there, the entire story would have went almost exactly the same without him because he doesn't really do anything. Even his motivation for going after Frank is a pretty silly reason and after a while, all of the douche jokes go a bit stale. Apart from that I can't really fault anything else to be quite honest, I really liked this film.
Sausage Party is crude, it's bizarre and at times it's blatantly offensive, however it's an immensely funny film that makes a number of thought-provoking statements about beliefs and acceptance. Clever character designs and a talented voice cast combine to create some likeable and memorable characters that will really grow on you throughout the film. Not only do they deliver some brilliant dialogue throughout but their physical appearance helps to make them look and feel human, this is a film that will make you feel for food. Clever, humorous and with more heart than it probably should have, Sausage Party marks another fantastic comedy for Rogen and Goldberg and may just be one of the funniest films of the year.
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