As the Spider-Verse franchise prepares to launch itself to new heights with the fast-approaching Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, now is as good a time as any to give Sony Pictures Animated a very controlled pat on the back; it may have vomited up The Emoji Movie, but even if the history-in-the-making Spider-Verse trilogy wasn’t enough to redeem the studio, the ability to lay claim to one of Netflix’s best films of 2021 should put it clear in many an eye.
That film is none other than The Mitchells vs. the Machines, the animated sci-fi comedy joyride that saw then-first-time film director Mike Rianda (Gravity Falls) nab a pair of Annie Awards for Outstanding Achievement for Directing in an Animated Feature and Outstanding Achievement in Writing for an Animated Feature, as well as an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated Feature.
With a voice cast featuring such talents as Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Eric André, Olivia Colman, and Fred Armisen, The Mitchells vs. the Machines follows the plight of the Mitchells, a dysfunctional Michiganian family who, somehow, someway, end up being humanity’s last hope against a global robot apocalypse.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines more than earns the universally positive sentiment surrounding it, with each and every beat, from its action to its comedy to its more heartfelt moments, not only hitting some delectably original and entertaining notes, but also doing so in a way that audiences of all ages can fall in love with, and the folks of r/movies are putting it through a laudatory wringer once again.
It may have been a bit of a sleeper hit when it first landed on Netflix nearly two years ago, but if you’re looking for what will no doubt be one of the highest-flying animated excursions of the decade, you’ll be hard-pressed to do better than The Mitchells vs. the Machines.
The Mitchells vs. the Machines is available to stream on Netflix.