Those two emojis perfectly encapsulate my feelings towards this film. It’s an epic adventure that follows a smartphone trying to save the world from being deleted. What could possibly go wrong? Everything. This half-hearted film is uninspiring; it completely misrepresents the way teenagers communicate and thus failing to appeal to any audience.
The narrative is lost, bland, and boring. While the idea of producing a film based on a globally recognised phenomenon like emojis may seem appealing, the result is at its core simply a cash grab by producers. Some excruciatingly terrible films are somewhat redeemed by moments of humour, wit, and excitement. The Emoji Movie elects not to do this, presenting us instead with a calamitous comedy that is nowhere near as addictive as the smartphone apps it explores.
Sometimes films that focus on product branding, such as The Lego Movie, deserve the benefit of the doubt. But not this one. It is filled with an absurd amount of product placement, including Whatsapp, Candy Crush, and even Just Dance, that make it more of an ad campaign than a credible film. The artistic calibre was clear from the very first scene, when the Meh emoji declares: “emojis are the most important form of communication ever invented.” Yes, that’s a line in this film. Not the telephone, moving picture, written word, or even the fax, but…emojis.
You’d think that with a cast studded with the likes of comedian James Corden there would be multiple comedic scenes, but no. Most of the jokes are surface-level humour about the fact that the characters are nothing but emojis — how original.
The Emoji Movie isn’t an unnecessary film with no plot, but simply a money-making ploy. The blatant advertising and lazy designs make the film unwatchable and visually embarrassing. How could anything else be named worst film of the 2010s?
