The Willoughbys (2020)

I liked the idea of the story revolving around terrible parents, and I was looking forward to seeing how they would handle it. In the end, however, it was a bit disappointing. When the parents disappeared from the picture, a sort of new plot emerged that was less fun and less compelling. Moreover, the animated film and characters were very busy, chaotic, and noisy. Everything unfolded too hastily, and there was little clarity.

Visually still reasonably okay, and the house was also beautifully rendered. The humor itself was perhaps just a bit too lame to land. The ending was rather corny and predictable, but by then I had already lost interest about fifteen minutes earlier. A shame; not bad, but anything but a masterpiece.

Translated from Dutch · View original

The Willoughbys is a movie where the name is already hard to spell. That gives the rest of this shit away. Watched the animated film with my three young children, but both young and old were glad when it was over. Impressive that anyone even bothers to produce this kind of pulp. A waste of energy, truly bizarre.

Translated from Dutch · View original

Tim [Will Forte], Jane [Alessia Cara], and their twin brothers Barnaby A & B [Seán Cullen] are so fed up with the extreme selfishness of their father [Martin Short] and mother [Jane Krakowski] that they find a way to get rid of them. They soon discover that standing on their own two feet isn't easy, not least because they have to take care of their impulsive newborn sister Ruth [Brian Drummond]. Ricky Gervais is the narrator, and there are prominent roles for Maya Rudolph and Terry Crews in this busy laugh-or-I-shoot animation full of comedic archetypes that confirm the lack of original ideas.

Translated from Dutch · View original