The Mitchells vs the Machines (2021)

(Netflix Streaming, March 2022) Two movies released in short succession make a trend, and so in-between Ron’s Gone Wrong and The Mitchells vs the Machines, we have two animated family films that derive much of their inspiration from how customer technology can be used in terrible ways. (Few will miss the irony of both films being made widely accessible through streaming platforms.)  This one goes hard in its family-friendly nightmare, as an Apple-ish company releases android-like devices that then proceed to enslave humans out of jealous spite. By plot contrivance, the only humans who escape capture are the dysfunctional Mitchell family on a road trip from the Midwest to the West Coast. The best hint that the film is going to be better than expected comes early in the opening credits, as Phil Lord and Christopher Miller are listed as producers: while they didn’t direct or write the film, the result reflects the sure-handed touch that they brought to Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs and The Lego Movie: fast pace, semi-absurdist humour, comic self-awareness and a core of humanity at the heart of it, this time focusing on a father/daughter relationship. I can’t say that I agree with all of the creative choices here (some of the visual design is… grotesque), but the film amply exceeds expectations and keeps delivering until the end. Visually, Sony Pictures Animation manages a quirky blend of traditional CGI, indie-type cutesy drawing and, in the third act, some vapourwave aesthetics—pushing the enveloped of CGI family films much like they did with Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse. Likable characters and media-literate comedy help make the film a success despite some familiar elements, another proof that execution counts far more than premise. Now let’s see if the tech-dubious attitude makes it to other family movies.