It seems fitting that on the weekend of International Burger day that I went along to see the new Bob’s Burgers movie after having a burger for dinner!

There is a challenge with turning any tv series into a film, particularly animation, with how the narrative is formed in its longer than usual format while keeping the essence of the series intact. There is a risk of making it feel like three episodes one after another or it being disjointed from the series.

The Bob’s Burgers Movie has delivered in providing a highly entertaining film that serves the fanbase well! I’m a big fan of the series and it doesn’t feel out of place while at the same time it can stand out on its own. What I liked most was the look of the film and the use of musical numbers.

The animation that has been used looked beautiful up on the big screen. It’s a very similar look to the series but you can tell there is some additional polish, notably with lighting and shading. For me this really popped in the characters hair. The songs were fun, upbeat, and helped progress the film along with a lot of funny lyrics. The series often uses songs in episodes, so having a movie without any would not have been the same.

I felt that each character in the Belcher family had a decent amount of screen time to progress their own narratives that ultimately tie together nicely at the end. Of the family, it is Louise (voiced by Kristen Schaal) who is the star of the show (which often occurs in the series as well) while Gene’s storyline was probably the weakest. Just for the record Tina is my favourite character and she had some great moments. Her storyline involved making Jimmy Jr her summer boyfriend, which is very on brand for Tina.

As for supporting characters, the show is currently in its twelfth season meaning there have been a lot of reoccurring characters over the years and I’m sure each fan would have their favourites. It would have been impossible and impractical for the movie to reference everyone but they did a pretty darn good job getting a lot in. Of course Teddy and the Fischoeders have starring parts however we also get a little bit of Rudy, Sergeant Bosco, and even a cameo from our favourite bikies!

The movie also used some existing references from the show’s run to build the story around, which ties in well for fans as not everything is new. It’s a really good balance to introduce new people to the series where you don’t need a lot of backstory yet those references will be appreciated by the fanbase. I’m getting flashbacks to when this is done poorly, the one that springs to mind is the X-Files movie (for many reasons that we shall not get into today!)

If you are a fan of the series, you’re going to enjoy this one. If you’re a fan of animation, I think you’re also going to like this one. Do you need to see it at the cinema? Probably not but that said, it did look really nice up on the big screen. You’ll have plenty of laughs all the way to the post-credits scene.

Rating:  Great