Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 is failsafe entertainment for the kids

REVIEW: Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2 is a second serving of farced food

Colourful calories come alive

CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS 2

Director: Cody Cameron (Open Season 3)

Starring: the voices of Bill Hader, Will Forte, Anna Faris and Andy Samberg

Rated: G

Rating: 3/5

A HEFTY helping of surrealistically silly gastronomy awaits with Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2.

While the overall dish ain't quite as fresh as before, there are just enough new ingredients to fill the appetites of young animation fans. The story picks up right after the first Cloudy, where hapless inventor Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) is mourning the destruction of his wondrous machine that turned water into food.

After landing a plum job with his childhood idol, tech guru Chester V (Will Forte), Flint thinks he has finally found the right outlet for his gifts.

However, upon returning to his home island of Swallow Falls, Flint discovers his long-lost gizmo is still alive and working.

Only now it is responsible for the non-stop manufacture of creatures known as "foodimals" - living hybrids of food and animals that are running amok.

If you've never savoured exotic creatures such as shrimpanzees, tacodiles, flamangoes, watermelephants and - why, of course! - meatballruses, then here is a veritable zoo for the tastebuds.

Frenetically staged and dazzlingly illustrated - the CCM2 animaters have the best palette of screen colours this side of Pixar - this solid sequel is failsafe entertainment for the kids in the run-up to Christmas.