‘Storks’ review: “Enjoyable though unmemorable”

Storks review: Nicholas Stoller injects some comedy into his first animated movie which is largely enjoyable, but instantly forgettable.

Storks review by Paul Heath.

Storks deliver babies. Everyone knows that. Well, they used to exclaims Nicholas Stoller‘s (Bad Neighbours) first foray into animation.

Storks, from WAG – that’s Warner Bros. Animation, revolves around an Internet shopping destination where all of the parcels are delivered by – yes you’ve guessing it – storks. They’ve long been done with those pesky babies now that Kelsey Grammar‘s Hunter is in charge. Hunter’s reign at the top is set to come to an end and Junior (Adam Samberg) looks like the man to take over – he has just one task – to fire human worker Tulip (Katie Crown) who keeps messing things up and forcing the sales numbers to nose-dive. Tulip was the last baby ever to be scheduled for delivery by the storks, and because her designated deliverer Jasper (Danny Trejo) lost her tracker, she missed her union with her family – hence for her remaining at the company. Junior steps up to the plate and gets ready to exit the now-grown Tulip, but then stumbles across the tiny issue of an unauthorised infant being ordered and in dire need of deliver. Can he and Tulip make the special delivery before their high-tempered boss finds out?

Stoller teams with animation veteran Doug Sweetland, a former Pixar animator who has worked on the likes of Finding Nemo, Monster’s Inc., and some of the Toy Story movies. As you may expect with that prestige behind him, the animation on Storks, his first as co-director with Stoller is top-notch. The helmer of films like Forgetting Sarah Marshall, The Five-Year Engagement and Get Him To The Greek, who also scripts, of course manages to inject reams of comedy beats into his self-penned script, which, while dark in places, is suitable for children of most ages. There’s a lot of charm with it too, and while things don’t reach the heady heights of the aforementioned Pixar movies, or even the recent output of Illumination, there’s enough going on to keep us all interested. Particular stand-outs include a fleeting appearance by a pack of wolves (voiced by Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele), who bring lots of comedy to their part, forming part of a very unexpected, original idea. Trejo provides some sinister beats as the pursuing Jasper, intent on taking back Tulip – his character providing more of the darker moments which may be a little more uncomfortable for younger audience members.

Although reasonably paced, the film suffers from a slightly less-tight second half and we found the little audience members who we saw the film with have their attention swayed about two-thirds in. Still, there’s a great message (as with all great animated fares) and with a talented cast, decent, funny story kids will lap up every second. It’s just a shame they’ll have forgotten all about it once the doors open and they head for home. Stoller has made an enjoyable first dip into animation, though sadly not a memorable one.

Storks review by Paul Heath, October 2016.

Storks is released in UK cinemas on October 14th, 2016.