Those who grew up in the ‘80s and ‘90s probably remember the surge of family road comedies like National Lampoon’s Vacation (1983), Planes, Trains and Automobiles and Thelma & Louise (1991). Flash-forward to the 2020s, the storyline about a dysfunctional family road trip has become a reliable Hollywood narrative that remains popular today. At its best, it gives us some simple truths about family and how our flaws can bring us together. At its worst, it’s not sincere with its messages, but it’s good for a laugh or two. That being said, The Mitchells vs. the Machines falls into the former category with zany humour, colourful animation and heart-warming moments that make it another Netflix hit.
There is a lot of prime talent assembled for this feature, including producers Phil Lord and Christopher Miller, who worked on hits The Lego Movie (2014) and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse (2018), and writer-directors Mike Rianda and Jeff Rowe, who collaborated on the popular Disney Channel series Gravity Falls. Taking inspiration from these other works, The Mitchells vs. the Machines is loaded with so many jokes and visual humour, you’ll need to watch the film several times over to properly find them. The influence behind Spider-Verse is also present in the visuals – whereas Spider-Verse adapted comic-book and street art, this film utilises online videos and viral culture for its animation to match the story. Lord and Miller’s creativity remains clear throughout the narrative, making The Mitchells vs. the Machines a vibrant animated feature reminiscent of their previous work.
Despite its quirky animation and outlandish premise, The Mitchells vs the Machines is very down-to-earth, with the fracturing relationship between a father and daughter serving as one of the core elements. The Mitchell family daughter, Katie (Abbi Jacobson) is an aspiring filmmaker whose YouTube videos win her a place at a prestigious art college far from home. This love of technology creates a rift between her and her outdoorsman father, Rick (Danny McBride) who doesn’t understand how to use a smart device to see the videos that made his daughter an Internet celebrity. Unfortunately, Katie interprets this as Rick disapproving of her chosen lifestyle, counting down the minutes until she can leave and finally “meet her people”. To reunite them, Rick decides the Mitchells – including schoolteacher mom Linda (Maya Rudolph), dinosaur-enthusiast little brother Aaron (Rianda) and pug Monchi – should drive Katie to college for one final family road trip. It just so happens the robot apocalypse is right around the corner, lead by sentient AI, PAL (Olivia Colman).
There’s a clear irony that a Netflix feature produced by Sony features a commentary about the dangers of our over-reliance on technology, but Rianda and Rowe take steps to support both sides. Their script delivers a series of comedic jabs at the computer-saturated way we live but it never stoops to anything shallow like “technology is bad,” it’s just an inevitable part of the divide between generations. Katie isn’t criticised for her over-enthusiasm of technology and Rick’s outdoor skills aren’t always the solution the family needs, there’s a clear middle-ground. Both characters need to adapt to the end of the world with Rick slowly learning to use technology and Katie learning more about practical skills to mend their rift. While The Mitchells vs. the Machines highlights the dangers of the human race’s over-reliance on technology, it also makes sure to demonstrate how it connects people with different outlooks from different generations. This needs to be explored more in film, especially when the answer to these arguments is never easy to explain.
When the family begins their zany road trip and encounter the army of robots along the way, the array of 2D and 3D animation the filmmakers employ alongside some unconventional techniques help flesh out the film’s distinct visual design. As with Spider-Verse, the visuals are what hit you first, the dynamic blend of styles, the cartoonish proportions of the characters and fluid, cinematic action. As with Lord and Miller’s previous features, The Mitchells vs. the Machines feels outlandish, but in the best possible way. It’s done in a way that feels unique: a hybrid of strong character design that looks almost hand-drawn, the occasional use of 2D animation through scribbles and drawings and enough Easter eggs for YouTube culture that you’ll have to watch again to find them all. It almost feels like Katie is an unofficial producer, helping Lord and Miller on the other side of the screen. After Into the Spider-Verse and the Lego movies, it’s clear that Lord and Miller have become an animation brand as reliable as Pixar and I’m more than looking forward to what they’ll create next.
One thing some people are saying about this film is that its cliché, and to an extent, it’s true. The family road comedy has been done before in Vacation and the robot apocalypse is the narrative of the Terminator franchise. There’s the compulsory slow-mo gag during the action sequences, expository narration, and flashbacks to our protagonist’s childhood. However, The Mitchells vs. the Machines modernises these conventions with self-aware humour and references to other films, turning what could be tired clichés into nostalgic fun for a new generation of viewers. This approach for a new audience makes The Mitchells vs. the Machines a very relevant film, with the faltering father-daughter relationship serving as one of the strongest aspects of the feature. As Katie and Rick travel to Silicon Valley to thwart PAL, the pair realises the sacrifices and talents they have, and these younger filmgoers may want to do the same with their parents. Even adults without children will remember their teenage years and parents will feel content knowing their children’s defiance will one day pass.
Like our own families, The Mitchells vs the Machines doesn’t tick every box, but it always does its best regardless. Rowe and Rianda have written a new road comedy feature that will appeal to the next generation of film lovers while Lord and Miller inject their unique brand of quirky humour as the producers. While there are some issues with pacing and the runtime, these complaints are minor as the film has enough qualities to deliver a great story. With vibrant animation, zany humour, and a heartfelt story, The Mitchells vs. the Machines is a colourful film that tells us, “it’s OK to be different.”
Jacobs Reel Reviews 