I'm at the Movies!
by Zoo Knudsen
We dodged a bullet last year. Thanks to the SAG-AFTRA strike of 2023, the world came perilously close to never being able to experience the highly anticipated sequel to the 2022 smash hit The Pumpkids Movie: Rise of the PumpKing. Luckily disaster was averted, and I was invited to an exclusive preview of the what this critic is calling one of the best animated movies I've ever seen, and I've seen several.
Don't worry though, I won't spoil any of the fun. And trust me, you don't want to know what happens until you see it up there on the big screen. You need the full IMAX experience. There won't be a dry eye, or a dry seat, in the house because this movie has as much heart as it does hyperrealistic graphic imagery involving the torture and murder of a number of the citizens of Pumpkinland and Turnip Mountain, including mashing, peeling, dicing, juicing, and carving. Yes, the pulp in this fiction definitely flies in this very kid-unfriendly cartoon masterpiece.
I love Halloween! It's definitely my favorite holiday because I get wear clothing and make-up in public that might get me in a lot of trouble any other day of the year. And I love a good scary movie. To be honest, I am a little surprised at Pixar going the "hard R" route for the sequel of a beloved children's classic, but sometimes you have to take a big risk to get a big reward. And every scene rewards the viewer with a visual feast of humor, pathos, and eldritch horror.
In The Pumpkids Movie: Rise of the PumpKing, the queen of Pumpkinland was voiced by Queen Elizabeth. Sadly, she died before being able to reprise her role. But thanks to the power of artificial intelligence combined with hundreds of hours of recorded speeches and interviews, you can barely tell that it isn't her shouting out everyone's favorite catch phrase, this time with about 15% more stank on it!
Picking up where the last movie left off, with Jack Pumpkin having defeated the Pumpkin Witch Agnes O'Pumpkin, again voiced by Judi Dench's sister Trudi, rescued the pumpkids from the acid mines deep within the caverns of Turnip Mountain, and discovered the location of the Patch of Destiny, the true adventure is only beginning. In order to become the PumpKing and earn the right to wield the Pitchfork of Power, Jack must unite the pumpkins and the turnips by slaughtering everyone who stands in his way.
But did he really murder all those innocent gourds and root vegetables? Was it only a vision of what might be? Could there be a better way, perhaps with the help of the pumpkids? Who, or what, are the pumpkids? And which of your favorite characters will survive to appear in the final installment of the Pumpkids trilogy? Hey, I said no spoilers and I meant it!
Director Chazz Jonz has said in interviews that their intention was to combine the childish innocence of the source material with the cosmic dread and emphasis on forbidden and dangerous knowledge commonly associated with the works of H.P. Lovecraft and Charles M. Schulz. They wanted to explore madness, religion, and superstition in human society as an inevitable outcome, and the dangers inherent in unfettered scientific discovery. It's also a musical. I think they succeeded.
The Pumpkids Movie 2: The Patch of Destiny will be in theaters this Friday!
On your recommendation, Mr. Knutsen, I'm definitely gonna see it and take my grandkids.