Foodfight! (2012)

Foodfight! Poster

The evil Brand X joins a supermarket that becomes a city after closing time.

Film Overview
"Foodfight!" is an animated film released in 2012, directed by Lawrence Kasanoff and produced by Threshold Entertainment. It includes the voices of significant Hollywood actors such as Charlie Sheen, Wayne Brady, Hilary Duff, and Eva Longoria. The plot is centered on the concept that all supermarket products come to life and have their adventures when the store closes.

The Plot
The protagonist is Dex Dogtective (voiced by Charlie Sheen), an investigator who is likewise a popular figure within the supermarket, referred to as Marketropolis. He planned to propose to his sweetheart, Sunshine Goodness (voiced by Hilary Duff), a feline mascot for a raisin brand, however she inexplicably vanishes, causing a sad Dex retiring from his investigator work.

Within Store Marketropolis, there are 2 worlds, the "Ikes," representing the shop brand names, and the "Brand X," the brand-new, aggressive brand name that wishes to take control of. When Brand X attacks the grocery store, Dex, in addition to his friend, Daredevil Dan (voiced by Wayne Brady), a chocolate squirrel, and the other Ikes, need to combat to save their market.

Dispute and Resolution
Brand X, led by the malevolent Lady X (voiced by Eva Longoria), invades the supermarket with the intention of changing all the Ikes, causing a war known as "The Foodfight". This dispute is where the movie gets its name from. Dex, after coming out of his self-imposed retirement, rallies the Ikes together to withstand the invasion.

During the fight, it is exposed that Lady X is in fact a transformed variation of Sunshine Goodness. She was abducted, got her looks altered by the atrocious Mr. Clipboard turning her into Lady X, and triggered the invasion of the Brand X. In the final battle, Dex has the ability to go back Lady X back into Sunshine Goodness. Sunshine, upon reverting back to her previous self, has no memory of the damaging activities she carried out as the transformed Lady X.

Themes and Reception
The movie attempts to depict styles of loyalty, nerve, and the power of friendship, showing the fight in between great and evil through the characters of Dex and Lady X. It animates these styles within the backdrop of a grocery store, developing a vibrant world of anthropomorphic product mascots.

Nevertheless, "Foodfight!" was consulted with overwhelmingly negative evaluations from critics and audiences. The film remained in development hell for over a decade - production originally started in 2001 but got delayed due to various aspects, including a theft of hard disk drives that contained the movie's assets.

Criticism was aimed at its animation quality, which was criticized for lacking the fluidity and engaging nature typical in a lot of animated movies. The story was also stated to be confusing and lacked coherence. Some saw it as a very finely veiled, extended commercial for numerous real-life brands, as many brand name mascots were featured actively in the movie, compromising its creative appeal.

Conclusion
While "Foodfight!" failed to impress the critics and audiences, it definitely stands out as a special idea in the realm of animated films, albeit executed inadequately. The motion picture serves as a lesson in production difficulties, storytelling, and the delicate balance required in the use of item positioning in movies. Its unconventional plot and special character personas might have depicted a fascinating dream world, but, sadly, the movie fell short on providing this pledge.

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