By Jessica Sierocki, Photojournalist.
Warning: the following review may or may not contain horrible food puns (and I’m not sorry).
If Rotten Tomatoes (the website, not the real food) rates it as an 82 percent, “Sausage Party” must be worth an eight dollar ticket, right? Well, the way I see it, viewers fall into three different categories after seeing the movie. There are people absolutely in love with such a hilarious film, those that were cringing behind their hands during every minute, and then there are people like myself, somewhere in the middle, wondering what exactly played out on screen for a whopping 89 minutes.
For those of you who haven’t seen the movie, here’s a brief rundown with as little spoilers I can mustard (see what I did there?). The movie revolves around a sausage named Frank and his girlfriend, Brenda, in a grocery store called Shopwell’s. A sausage and a hot dog bun, the perfect pear (this is too easy). The goal for the items on the shelves is to be chosen by the “gods” and to be taken to the Great Beyond. However, things take a turn for the worse when Frank finds out what really happens outside of Shopwell’s and tries to warn his newfound food friends of the danger of being chosen by the “gods.” None of the delusional morsels wants to believe the truth, but they ultimately band together to take control of their lives. Meanwhile, Frank and Brenda try to defeat a feminine hygiene product from trying to butcher them (I’m counting that as one). Classic.
Looking at the face value of the movie, it seems just like a bunch of inappropriate, talking foods that want to have sex. Period. But, if you dig beneath the surface of the promiscuous picture, racial stereotypes can be found in every Shopwell’s aisle. But did all of that add to the significance of the film? Stay with me here. All of these foods from different cultural backgrounds come together to defeat a common enemy,“the gods,” and ultimately succeed. Do I smell a metaphor or is comparing this movie to the real world too much of a stretch?
Is it possible Seth Rogan and his team of comedy heroes wanted to showcase how every person in the world can overcome cultural and socioeconomic differences for the greater good? Or maybe they were trying to show people can have different religious beliefs and still be able to get along regardless of religious affiliation. Then again, it’s possible the creators of the film just thought creating the first animated film for adults would be a great way to make millions at the box office, which they did.
You can decide for yourself whether this movie is worthy of the high rating on Rotten Tomatoes or if the entire idea was just a missed steak (last pun, I promise). Whichever way you look at it, the movie definitely broke down some barriers. There isn’t another movie like this around and odds are, there won’t be anytime soon.
