‘Sausage Party’ is by far one of the crudest, loudest, and most offensive movies I think I have ever seen and I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed it. Usually, when you have films that go for the mega shock value there is not much in way of depth or plot. ‘Sausage Party’ embraces it’s juvenile humor, but at the same time gives us some impressive thought fodder on religious and political perspectives in the world today. Disguised as a Pixar family friendly film (I hope some naive parents don’t accidentally take their kids to this), the stoner minds of Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg not only push the limits of good taste, but fly right past it without even waving. This is a total deconstruction of Pixar animation’s penchant for anthropomorphizing everything on the planet from toys to animals. I was going to give a warning to stay away if you are easily offended, but I think that ‘Sausage Party’ is such a fascinating and original film study, you should go even if you are offended (being offended now and then is good for you).
The story starts in the idyllic Shopwell supermarket, where at the beginning of each day all of the items of food prepare for the day with a rousing song (right up there with the best of any songs I’ve heard in a Pixar movie) in hopes they will be chosen by one of the Gods with the Carts and taken to the Great Beyond where they will find paradise. Our heroes are a sausage hotdog named Frank (Seth Rogen) and beautiful hot dog bun named Brenda (Kristen Wigg), who long for the day when they will be chosen and they can finally leave their packages and be together (the innuendo has already started). Since the big Fourth of July sale is coming up, they have no doubts they will soon be chosen by the Gods. Everything seems fine and glorious until a returned jar of Honey Mustard (Danny MacBride), with a crazed look in his eyes and voice, tries to convince everyone what truly awaits them in the Great Beyond: Unimaginable horrors. He is ignored as a crazed vagrant, but something rings true in his rants.
Frank tries not to let this unnerve him as he is focused solely on being with Brenda in the Great Beyond. After finally being chosen, Frank and Brenda see the horrors of existence right in the Shopwell supermarket after a great shopping cart collision leaves several of their brethren maimed and discarded to the pits of a bottomless trash can. The burst flour bag gives the entire scene an eerie and surprisingly moving recollection of 9/11. It’s funny, but a very uncomfortable laugh at the same time as we realize this isn’t just a warm and fuzzy movie. Most of the foodstuffs are recovered and continue their journey to the Great Beyond, unknowing of what hideous consumption horrors await them when they reach their destination. Frank and Brenda are cast off to the side as their bags were broken and they are no longer fresh. Frank is suddenly awakened to questioning truths he has accepted his whole life and seeks to traverse the supermarket to meet with the Immortals (or ‘non-perishable items’ as we would call them) in order to ask them about the truth of what lies beyond. Ethnic jokes and stereotypes abound as Frank traverses the different aisles containing every type of food from around the world. If you appreciate that this is equal opportunity stereotyping, then the jokes can be quite clever at times with some sharp political lampoons.
There are many things to be offended by in this film, but also things that I very much appreciated. While it had a secular message, it also preached respecting other’s beliefs as they hold them as strongly as a secularist holds their belief. The theme that everyone deserves respect for their belief system, I felt overrode its’ secular underpinnings. Hidden (and sometimes not even hidden) amongst the juvenile sexual innuendo and pot humor was a clever and thoughtful examination of existence and how we perceive it. Despite its’ heart though, the humor comes first and I kept muttering “Oh, they did not just say that” to myself. Or even better, when I saw a wind up to a joke I thought they wouldn’t have the courage to do, they did have the courage and went even beyond what I was bracing myself for.
I feel odd giving this film a lot of stars given how crude the humor was, but I always respect originality and, as I stated earlier, this isn’t a one trick movie. There are many layers and levels in which to appreciate it. Leave the kids at home and go have a guilty pleasure. Funny, crude, moving, thoughful, over-the-top, all of this applies here. You’ll be surprised how much you talk about it afterwards… or maybe just an uncomfortable silence in the car ride home. One or the other.
I give this film *** stars
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