Sausage
Party is an animated movie directed by Greg Tiernan and
Conrad Vernon. The cast is star studded and highlighted by Seth Rogen, who also
co-wrote the movie. The movie follows a sausage named Frank and his lover
Brenda Bun. The two characters live in a utopian, grocery store society where
every food and grocery item has its own personality and human-like
capabilities. The only thing on their minds is to finally be chosen together
for the upcoming Fourth of July festivities. Life and joy fill the air but one
day a mustard jar is returned and weeps of a hellish reality that awaits them
all. Before ultimately shattering his own mustard jar, Frank leaps out of his
bag trying to save him but only ends up forcing the cart to crash and all
groceries to fall out of the cart. In a war torn scene, Frank and Brenda escape
with a few other consumables. Frank then begins his journey to find out the
truth about the outside world. His first encounter is with the alcohol aisle,
which is a bonanza. He meets an alcoholic drink that resembles a Native
American Shaman and he tells Frank the truth about the outside. Frank then asks
many questions while taking puffs of marijuana from a kazoo. A large amount of
time passes and Frank remembers about his friends, who have left the alcohol
aisle for the Hispanic aisle. The Hispanic aisle resembles an old Western
movie, mostly taking place in a saloon. Theresa Taco meets the gang, minus
Frank, and warns them of a feminine product that is seeking their demise in
this area. This product is a Douche. A figurative and literal douche. Theresa
smuggles the group out of the back aisle to meet up with Frank. He then
explains his findings to them and asks them to come to the cutlery aisle, just
passed the ice mountains. Refusing to accept their new reality, they decline
and leave Frank to find out the terrible truth of knives and prongs by himself.
His final attempt to save the food items before the Fourth of July is received
with mixed emotions and only he can convince the others to fight the “humans”
known as gods. Sausage Party is a
comedic animation that has been in production for over 10 years and it appeals
to a wide range of demographics across the globe.
The
genre of Sausage Party should be
clear to anyone familiar with Seth Rogen, it is a comedy. First, begin with the
title Sausage Party. The title is a
sexual innuendo referencing a male dominated social gathering. Also, most of
the characters in the movie are male. Next, the intentions of Frank and Brenda
are to one day be placed together. Frank desperately wants to be placed inside
of Brenda. Throughout the entire movie there is very obvious sexual tension
between all characters. A.O. Scott of the New
York Times writes, “There are schisms and antagonisms based on territory
and belief – most piquantly represented by the enmity between a bagel and a
lavash – and a repressive sexual morality underwritten by the fear of the gods”
(Scott 3). Scott is saying that every animation is available for sexual
interaction and lust. Absolutely any character that has more than two lines
reveals deep sexual desire whether it be homosexual or heterosexual. Then, Brenda
second guesses her intentions with Frank when she blames all of their
misfortunes on the fact that her and Frank reached out of their respective
packaging and “touched tips”. “Touching tips” refers to the characters touching
hands in the beginning of the movie. Brenda feels dirty about herself and
begins to blame Frank. Finally, there are cute character sprites that provide a
light hearted adventure for the audience. This sense of reprieve for the
audience allows an easier laugh. Seth Rogen and developers did indeed have 10
years to figure out the ins and outs of each joke said in the movie.
Sausage Party has reportedly been in
production since the year 2006. At first thought many will think it should be
contain the perfect plot, perfect jokes, and perfect cast. The crew has had so
much time to work on it so why shouldn’t it be. The crew had ten years to
finish this movie. So much has happened in that allotted time that many new
ideas come and go. The developers had to find a way to appeal to every
generation in existence at the time and now. First, the crew looks at conflicts
that have outlasted the production of this movie. One such example is the
Israel-Palestine conflict. Two main characters consist of an Israeli bagel and
a Palestinian Lavash. Each character takes their respective jabs at each other,
clearly showing hatred, but again, there is a definitive sexual tension between
them. Next, there is a small scene in reference to the Holocaust. While
travelling aisle to aisle, Frank sees an army of sauerkraut lead by a Hitler
outfitted glass jar. The jar is stomping around on a stage and screaming to a
crowd of sauerkraut with one arm raised. Seth Rogen is Jewish and is content
with the scene. Scenes like these are just bringing up social problems but they
have a humorous twist. Many people out there believe we should talk about these
problems more and how these scenes appeal to them. Next, there are many
marijuana references. Rogen, a renowned stoner (person who indulges in
marijuana through smoking) throws in numerous THC jokes. According to Jason
Guerrasio of Business Insider, “…some
weed smoking with Jonah Hill helped nail down the movie” (Guerrasio 3). Jonah
Hill, a character in the movie, is a regular is Seth Rogen’s movies. Smoking
marijuana is becoming more prevalent in American kids and young adults. Many
will find joy in seeing cute, animated characters also partaking in the
festivities.
While
on the subject of appealing to different people, Sausage Party does a great job of touching on many issues that
plague our world. First, homosexuality is alive and well in today’s world and
especially in this movie. Theresa Taco is homosexual and the Lavash and Sammy
Bagel Jr. are also both gay. Theresa Taco is very open with her sexuality. She
openly “makes a move” toward Brenda Bun. In today’s world the idea of
homosexuality causes tension between people. Many people believe that it is not
right for two men or two women to be in love with each other or even have sex.
Orthodox Jews, “Devout” Christians, and radical Muslims all seriously look down
on the act of homosexuality. In recent news, gay marriage is legal across the
United States and it sparked outrage among many communities. It has not left
their mind and it is certain many parts of this movie upset a certain crowd of
spectators. Sammy Bagel Jr. and Kareem Abdul Lavash are more discrete with
their sexuality. Many would not even be able to tell the two were homosexual.
It could be an easy mistake to think that their sexual tension is just
displaced toward each other by accident. The secrecy of their sexuality engages
a whole different audience. There are many people in the world who are scared
to express their sexuality. They are scared of how people will think of them or
treat them. Many are scared to tell even their parents. This is the case of
Kareem and Sammy. Throughout the entire movie there is not one reference to
either of them being gay. A triumphant moment occurs when they do express
themselves and it shows the audience it is perfectly fine to embrace who you
are. Repercussions or not, there are people out there to support any belief.
Along with homosexuality, there are many stereotypes that poke fun at racism.
There is a black box of grits that resembles a mid ‘70s pimp, a promiscuous
Latina taco, and a Caucasian Twinkie. The grits box is a street tough with a
moustache and an urban accent. The Taco is a frequent at the bar and for some
reason the Douche seems to think he could take advantage of her. Finally, the
Caucasian Twinkie has a very creepy, proper voice and a white pompadour-esque
haircut.
Sausage Party may have had a very long
production time but the crew embraced it. They fit the ten years into an
88-minute movie so to speak. Twinkies are not in production anymore,
homosexuality is becoming an easier topic to speak about, and everyone now
knows the typical douche that makes recurring cameos in their lives. The movie
does indeed do a good job of being very funny but keeping a hand on the issues
that are in our world today.
-Joseph Iacobacci
Watch the Trailer HERE
