The Emoji Movie – Why so :(
Sony pictures animation have released the first trailer for their upcoming Emoji Movie which you can see here.
Admittedly, this is by no means a trailer I would have usually covered here on Skwigly, and regardless of wether it would appeal to other Skwigly writers or our lovely readers it does not seem to be a film that would appeal to me on a personal level, I’m not a user of emoji’s and so cannot say that the films subject matter is one that I can relate to either. Nonetheless it is simply a movie trailer, designed to sell a film, which it attempts to do so in a quirky manner, no doubt relating to the films promised use of singularly emotive characters. What makes this film worth writing about is the intense vitriol that has surrounded the release of this trailer within moments of it’s release online.
.@EmojiMovie I genuinely hope the worst for your movie and all involved in making it. Quit your jobs.
— Shoshana Weissmann (@senatorshoshana) December 20, 2016
The above example is just one of many tweets and other social media messages deploring the the film which has yet to be released.
I can understand how this movie may be accused of being a cash cow it’s a sad fact that this is how films like this are sometimes financed. You might even believe that all this generated anger is part of a strategic marketing campaign, that the character of “meh” is portraying the reaction they expected from people viewing the first footage from this film, not that those eager to attack it seem to have noticed.
From a cultural perspective whether you can like it or not – emoji’s are used, they’re a part of pop culture and this film seems to be attempting to reflect that. Using emoji’s as the basis of a film is no different to the way Wreck-it Ralph explored the video game world or The LEGO Movie explored its own products, these are just two recent examples of how animated features have been used to promote products and the concepts surrounding those products within their narratives. I have to ponder why this particular movie is getting so much hatred amongst the slew of similar upcoming american animated features? If people are fed up of product placement then why is The LEGO Batman Movie getting so much love? If audiences are feeling a little fatigue of seeing yellow characters on screen then why isn’t the Minion centric Despicable Me 3 being deplored in quite the same way? Having not seen any of these films yet surely reaching the foregone conclusion that some are better than others is a little hasty?
If films reflect the times then regardless of wether The Emoji Movie turns out to be a masterpiece like Wreck-it Ralph or a brand laden cash-in like Food Fight the film has surely succeeded in creating a film that is a sign of the times? Wether that is for better or for worse will be revealed when the movie comes out next year and chances are whatever efforts are put into it, it won’t appeal to me and many others. The rather intense hatred is yours to see online, follow in any thread on Facebook or take a peek on twitter. It’s fascinating to see these sweary movie clairvoyants at work.