THE EMOJI MOVIE

It's no surprise to me that, in today's world, The Emoji Movie is a film that actually exists. Emojis are everywhere thanks to the dependence of smartphones to communicate and it won't be long until it overtakes Chinese, Spanish and English as the most common spoken language in the world. That's not even possible by the way but they'll find a way.

Gene (T. J. Miller), a multi-expressional emoji, sets out on a journey to become a normal emoji. 

There's a little bit more to the plot however, it's not even worth delving further into what this is actually about.

Anyone who's ever used a smartphone will be able to tell you that there can be some fun had in using emojis to express yourself, whether it be in an innocent or rude manner. Is it fun to sit through a ninety-minute film about emojis though? The answer is a resounding no.

The Emoji Movie is just an excuse for blatant product placement and a chance to make incredibly irrelevant references to popular culture, the Pen-Pineapple-Apple-Pen song playing as they enter the YouTube app making me want to scream in anger. It's full of insanely annoying characters too, James Corden's Hi-5 being like a turd that just won't flush. You think he's gone but then he makes a very unwanted return.

The product as a whole, whether it be the unimaginative animation or the uninspired vocal performances, is void of any likability factor and the fact that I didn't hear one child laugh throughout speaks volumes. Animated films have come on leaps and bounds when it comes to conveying a message to the audience, but not The Emoji Movie. One of the only messages I took from this film was that boys should talk to girls via emojis prior to any form of human interaction. Fuck my life.

The Emoji Movie is as bad as I thought it'd be and then some. Avoid at all costs.

Verdict: ★