THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.
When animated shows stick around for so long, you expect a companion film during their tenure. Comedy Central's South Park got one before they even surpassed a decade on television. Nickelodeon's Spongebob Squarepants surprisingly got 3 movies within 20+ years. And with 20th Century's The Simpsons having one as well, it was bound for another one of their shows to come around. Along came the entertaining theatric adventure of Bob's Burgers.
PLOT
The Bob's Burgers Movie follows the Belcher family of the titular restaurant in Seymour's Bay (Bob, Linda, Tina, Gene and Louise). Bob and Linda are denied an extension on their loan, meaning they have only a week to pay it all or their restaurant equipment will be repossessed. They do ask their landlord Calvin Fischoeder to skip rent until the loan is paid for, but don't get this opportunity when a sinkhole forms in front of the restaurant. One night, Louise tries to prove her bravery by jumping into the sinkhole, but falls on accident instead. At the bottom, she finds a skeleton. Calvin is then convicted for murder when the skeleton links him to it. Not wanting them to lose their home, Louise leads her own investigation with her siblings to free their landlord. With the skeleton confirming to be deceased carnie named 'Cotton Candy Dan', that last worked at Wonder Wharf, the kids ask the other carnies if they know anything. While the majority believes Calvin committed the accused crime, one gives the kids a tip that it might be Calvin's brother Felix instead. When snooping around the home of the Fischoeders, they notice Felix himself preparing to leave. They then follow him to a Wonder Wharf ride, Mole Hill, that takes them to a secret clubhouse for both brothers. Although Calvin still claims to be innocent, he intends to flee the country with his brother via submarine. Their cousin and family lawyer Grover is present and while the kids hang with them as well, Louise deduces that the cousin is the murderer due to recognizing the matching cufflinks found on the skeleton. With the help of their friend Teddy, Bob & Lin sell food with a handmade food stand without a permit. Their attempt to make money goes awry when chased away by carnies after accidentally destroying a shrine of the late Cotton Candy Dan. When they hide in Mole Hill, they stumble into the secret clubhouse. It is here when Grover holds everyone at gunpoint (via speargun) and explains his motive: He intends to frame his cousins for the murder in order to gain the family trust money. He also tends to destroy Wonder Wharf and if he gains the money, he can remodel the park into a shopping center. He starts his plan by sending his cousins into the submarine, designed to drown them. He then pursues the Belcher family due to how they are witnesses of his confession. He chases them via go kart and by the time they escape the amusement park, the family falls into the sinkhole. Grover takes the advantage to bury them to eliminate his witnesses. However once he leaves to stage his false innocence, the family is able to escape the hole by breaking a water main that launches them back to the street. When Teddy notices the commotion, he helps them out of the go kart. Once they're free, they stop the fuse that would've destroyed the park and call the police. When they do, Grover gets arrested and the Fischoeder brothers get rescued as well. The film ends with a time jump a week afterwards, showing the restaurant get re-opened after the loan getting paid for, Tina kissing her crush Jimmy Pesto Jr. and Gene performing a concert at Wonder Wharf.
THOUGHTS
After 12 seasons and counting by the time of the film’s release, you would worry that series creator Loren Bouchard would run out of steam. It makes me happy when I say she, along with co-director Bernard Derriman and co-writer Nora Smith keep it going with this film. Like any average episode, I am always finding something new to laugh about with a slew of unordinary yet creative jokes. Just seeing these animated characters go through such shenanigans and say nonsense could be so out of place, yet I instead find myself amused of it all. In between the insanity that ensues in this animated world, the movie maintains the franchise’s heart by exploring important themes that matter in general life. And each lesson is taught with an entertaining array of memorable characters, played by a great voice ensemble. The Belchers have grown to be an iconic fictional family, almost on par with the Simpsons, because each member brings a totally different element that makes them stand out and all use their creative minds to help them get through their lives and use their surrounding to make it eventful. Aside from the infamous Sterling Archer, H Jon Benjamin has made Bob a hilarious protagonist for always being pessimistic and trying to prepare for the worst. Opposites attract once again because when Linda is around, she becomes a great wife to him for always being optimistic whatever the scenario. She doesn’t worry too much like her husband and chooses to find solutions rather than prepare for failure. John Roberts boosts her likability for making her so open minded to everything that comes her way. Seeing her outlook on things arguably gives inspiration for people to be confident rather than worried because you can’t guarantee everything can go your way. Kristen Schaal has made Louise a fan favorite for making her mischief so hysterical. Whether or not her siblings are involved, you know things are gonna shake up when she has a plan and is determined to follow through. In past episodes, there have been selfish motives, but the movie instead shows a selfless one. For so long, she’s been the bravest/toughest of the family because the bunny ears she wears motivates her to be so. She never took it off because she never wanted to lose that power, but little did she understand she was always brave. And seeing her overcome her own fears by helping her dad save the park is also inspiring because it teaches kids that being yourself is an important part of life. So if Louise really does believe she’s brave without the bunny ears, then she’ll be fine. Tina and Gene don’t have the most impactful story arcs this time around, yet the lessons they were able to teach caught my eye big time. Eugene Mirman has made Gene such a delight for portraying him as the most enthusiastic yet impulsive kid of the family, which explains the nonsense that comes out of his mouth. The best thing about him is that he loves making music as he aspires to be a popular musician. During the adventure that ensues, he worries that people won’t like what he’ll offer, but he comes to an understanding that each artist should follow their own compass rather than someone else’s. Tina has been a national treasure from the beginning thanks to Dan Mintz for making her shyness become her biggest trait as it always helps her boost her confidence. You may not relate to her fictional fantasies, but you can relate to the feeling of confusion when it comes to believing in love. As the eldest child, she is trying to come with terms on romance being real. She contemplates on making her move on Jimmy Jr. because she wants to ensure that reality is better than fantasy. In a personal perspective, it is hard to guarantee an outcome because the experience differs for everyone. But like the rest of her family, the adventure she had made her open minded that romance will always stick around as long she continues to believe in it. And seeing her kiss Jimmy Jr proves that she’s maintaining that belief and will continue to do so for the rest of the summer. While the Belchers are what make the franchise so memorable, they’re not the only characters that are entertaining. Teddy has been so close to the Belchers because he is very lonely, gaining a strong friendship with Bob when the series progressed. Since then, Larry Murphy has expressed that he’s been the most kindhearted and loyal of friends Bob will ever have. Every time he comes up with something like the food stand proves that you can never give up on friends when they’re at their lowest. Teddy ain’t the brightest either, but that ain’t gonna stop him from doing his best. Calvin and Felix Fischoeder are definitely the oddest of characters we’ve seen on the series because Kevin Kline portrays the former as highly out of touch in a social standpoint, whereas Zach Galifianakis plays the latter as overly emotional and extremely glamorous. We still get a kick out of these two in the long run because they’re proud of how they are and you can’t help respecting that in this perspective. Last but not least, every film adaptation of an animated series always has a one-off villain that makes the story interesting. And in all honesty, there couldn’t have been a better villain than making one related to the Fischoeders. Thanks to a solid voice performance by David Wain, Grover, who first appeared in two different prior episodes, definitely makes a mark for being about as corrupt and selfish you would expect from a Fischoeder. The only difference is that he actually had a smart, throughout plan and almost succeeded, and it ain’t easy to get as far as him. Seeing his downfall ain’t surprising, but it’s a clever reminder that all good things end when you’re stingy. This film was without a doubt a blast, but even a fan like myself can admit it had issues along the way. Like the biggest example comes to how the restaurant never blows up whenever local events occur. Considering that Mort and Teddy visit all the time, I'm surprised that they haven't helped giving it clout by blogging on Yelp. You guys know I don't like continuity errors, so consider me easily annoyed with the fact Gene claimed Tina recorded Louise falling when she was busy trying to save her from the fall. That was more confusing than Louise having her moment to brag without getting the attention of school rival Chloe first. They even top it off by not showing Cotton Candy Dan's shine before Bob accidentally crushes it. Also, why would the other carnies ignore the one carnie with the tip if he knew essential if it was about the case? They should understand it won't implicate anyone else but the Fischoeders. Going forward, if Sgt. Bosco found out that the cufflinks at the scene were custom, why hadn't they narrow it down to other shops that make custom cufflinks and cross check with Calvin's relatives. Sure, that would've not given the kids the chance to save their home, but the case would've been open and shut easily. And how did Fanny not notice Felix's outfit when they were face-timing from the start? He may have told her to not look for the sake of surprising her, but that was after they started the call, so she should've noticed what he was wearing before he gave such an instruction. There is a good point for people being ineligible for benefits after a felony conviction, but why didn't Grover think of something safer like tax evasion? Based on how stingy his cousins are, I truly believe Calvin & Felix getting arrested for that without the thought of innocence being a possibility. And if he wanted the body to be found, why not place him next to the dirt instead of buried within? He is honestly a smart villain, but messes up big time on that angle. If that wasn't bad enough, he is gambling when attempting to murder the Belchers right outside Jimmy Pesto's Pizzeria. Anyone including Teddy could've turned around and somehow they don't, which makes it insane for me to believe. I don't blame Bob for pulling over at his home, but I feel like he should've tried some kind of distraction to get a better chance of hiding. Had that happened, they would've stopped the fuse much earlier. And lastly, how the hell was it possible for Calvin to bring the Orchestramarama on top of the park after being underneath it for so long? I know Calvin is paying for it to be possible, but I would've liked to see that play out rather than hearing the excuse that he's rich, like Bruce Wayne saying he's Batman, for it to be possible. Other than that, I'm still laughing a whole bunch throughout. In short, The Bob's Burgers Movie is very funny of a film for showing how wild it can be in your local neighborhood. If you love the original show, then it's gonna be a given that you'll love this too.
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