Kidzworld checked out The Emoji Movie. Are these little symbols as fun up close and having their own adventures as they are in your phone? Check our review.
By: Lynn Barker
The Emoji Movie is centered in Textopolis, a world inside the smartphone of Alex (Jake T. Austin) a teen who relies a bit too much on his phone in general and especially to text-flirt with Addie (Tati Gabrielle), the girl he likes. Inside the phone, emojis have their own problems. Gene (voice of T.J. Miller) is supposed to be a “Meh” (who cares?) emoji but he has multiple facial expressions. Can he ever be the simple “Meh” his parents expect him to be? Will Alex learn to maybe actually talk to Addie?
Alex isn't sure what is going on inside his phoneCourtesy of Sony Pictures
Alex in Love
Teen Alex is crushin’ on Addie and seeks an emoji that will not let her know he is mad about her. The “Meh” emoji he tries to use is called Gene and he is a newbie, one with a malfunction. He makes all kinds of faces expressing multiple emotions. He’s bad at “Meh”. Instead he gives Addie a weird face that doesn’t make her love Alex. Whoops!
Gene (left) isn't sure he's ready to be selected by AlexCourtesy of Sony Pictures
Deletion for Gene?
When emoji bigwig Smiler (Maya Rudolph) decides this malfunction should get Gene deleted from the phone and sends out the anti-virus bots, Gene goes on his hero’s quest in search of the dropbox into the Cloud, where he hopes to be reprogrammed so he can do the job as a great “Meh”. A little used emoji named Hi-5 (voice of James Corden) goes along with him hoping to make it back into Alex’s fave emoji club and they get the help of a hacker/codebreaker named Jailbreak (Anna Faris) to move through the Apps on Alex’s phone in the search. Of course there are emojis like Cooler (ice cream), Daddy Poop (Patrick Stewart) and many more along the way.
Smiler at the Emoji wallCourtesy of Sony Pictures
App Adventures
On the way to reprogramming, the trio passes through the Candy Crush App where Hi-5 can’t stop munching on sweets, through the Spotify App, Instagram and the trio has to participate in a dance competition in the Just Dance app with Flamenca (Sofia Vergara) and Akiko Glitter (Christina Aguilera) to get closer to the Cloud. Terms like illegal Malware and other familiar computer or social media terms are thrown in and the Twitter bird appears. Meanwhile, back in the real world, will Alex learn to really talk to Addie? Will Gene make it to be reprogrammed or decide he likes himself with multiple expressions?
Akiko Glitter with Jailbreak, Hi-5 and GeneCourtesy of Sony Pictures
Poop flirts with FlamencaCourtesy of Sony Pictures
Wrapping Up
Hey, it is possible to take a tiny toy and build a totally wonderful movie experience around it. Look at The LEGO Movie which probably sold a ton of LEGOs. Well, The Emoji Movie has very little of that charm and wit. It has a very uncomplicated story and seems aimed at younger kids in the hope that more smartphone and App use will equal cash for the companies involved.
Hi-5 makes Gene show another emotion: laughterCourtesy of Sony Pictures
There is a nice message; what makes you different also makes you unique and you should go with your true self etc. but it’s delivered without any real weight. Hi-5, as voiced by James Corden, provides most of the laughs although all the voice actors are doing a good job.
Jailbreak tries to free Gene from Candy CrushCourtesy of Sony Pictures
Along with The Emoji Movie you get a cute short film called Puppy about the Hotel Transylvania family getting a new puppy. Of course Grandpa Drac ends up taking care of it. Very sweet. I’d say that the film will most appeal to your younger bro or sis. It’s not offensive or horrible but just kinda “Meh”. We go three stars.
The Emoji Movie Rating: 
The Emoji Movie PosterCourtesy of Sony Pictures
The Emoji Movie is in theaters now!
Have Your Say
Are you addicted to using tons of emojis in your texts? What if they lived in a world of their own? If this intrigues you, you might enjoy The Emoji Movie. Comment below.
