“Sausage Party” purports to be the first-ever R-rated CG animated film and it may technically win that claim. It isn’t, however, the first-ever R-rated animated film, with the likes of “South Park: Bigger, Longer, Uncut” and the works of Ralph Bakshi (such as “Fritz the Cat”) paving the way decades ago. Even most recently seen the release of “Hell and Back,” a raunchy stop-motion feature. “Sausage Party” has a lot in common with that last film in that both constantly remind the audience they’re watching an adult cartoon with gratuitous language. The difference is this film is funny, albeit intermittently so.
When the four credited writers (Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, Ariel Shaffir, & Kyle Hunter) get creative with stereotypes and double entendres is when the film is at its best. The script is filled with expected puns at the expense of sausages being inserted into buns and the like, but also has fun with bringing other inanimate objects to life. The biggest laughs come from cameos from objects such as toilet paper, tampons, and condoms. There’s ingenuity in utilizing non-perishable items such as firewood, grits, and Twinkies as immortal beings that hold the truth about life. When these moments hit, I laughed. There are, however, many dead spots where the laughs are only supposed to come from food spouting out expletives, which runs its course almost immediately.
The story plays out like it would in a children’s animated film. The food denizens of Shopwell’s believe in the Great Beyond, a paradise that awaits them outside the hallowed doors of the supermarket. All are excited to leave, with the fourth of July guaranteeing most won’t expire into the afterlife. The sausages especially can’t wait as they get to lose their virginities to the buns when freed from their packages. Frank (Seth Rogen) and Brenda (Kristen Wiig) can’t contain themselves, slipping out of their packages to touch tips. Brenda fears she may have angered the Gods by doing so, with the allegory on omnipresence cracking a few laughs.
Her fears are realized after an altercation with a returned honey mustard (Danny McBride) causes her and Frank to be abandoned in the store after hours as their friends leave for the Promised Land. Also being left behind is a douche that acts like a douche (Nick Kroll), who blames the duo for damaging his nozzle and preventing him from entering a MILF. He hunts the duo down seeking vengeance, cannibalizing on beverages which act as steroids. Creative moments like this, even when not funny, are entertaining.
Frank tapers off from Brenda to find answers about the Promised Land, leaving her to travail through the seedy underbelly of the grocery store. She’s accompanied by Sammy (Edward Norton) and Lavash (David Krumholtz), two ethnic stereotypes who are constantly at each other’s throats, as well as Teresa (Salma Hayek), a hard, horny taco whose impure thoughts for Brenda drive her mad. On the outside, wimpy Barry (Michael Cera) witnesses his friend Carl (Jonah Hill) be murdered and valiantly makes his way back to the supermarket to warn the others. His encounter with a stoner on bath salts is another example of inventiveness.
There’s even a moral to the story, one that would fit right at home in a “Toy Story” film. The majority of the gags are centered around racial stereotypes, with ethnic foods standing in for the stereotyped. Some will find this as offensive, with news already breaking of a few SJWs slamming the film. That is to miss the point, which is that the racism prevents the food from working together for a common cause. Yes, we laugh at the stereotypes, such as the douche referring to all Mexican food as illegal, but only because it rings true. We’re laughing at the stupidity of racism, not with it.
There’s no denying that “Sausage Party” made me laugh. There is, however, the problem that it only did so sporadically. The jokes connect at a fifty/fifty ratio, with the reliance on simple expletives and sexual innuendos dragging the film down. These act as desperate padding to get the film to its eighty-nine minute runtime, which feels much longer than it is. I had a friend who worried the concept couldn’t sustain itself for feature length and his assumption was correct. “Sausage Party” would be better suited as a forty-five minute short.
Even so, those looking for a few raunchy laughs will find them in “Sausage Party.” When the film is at its most outrageous, such as with the food orgy, it’s hysterical! When it coasts on coarse language, it meanders. Credit goes to directors Greg Tiernan & Conrad Vernon for boldly attempting to keep the film afloat with a zealous attitude. When they’re able to keep the film from sinking, it’s a delightful experience. When it’s submerged, it can be enervative.
Final Rating: B-