The Emoji Movie

In the smartphone city of Textopolis, where emojis are limited to only one emotion, our hero Gene (voiced by T.J. Miller) can’t fit in—he’s supposed to be a “Meh!” but can’t suppress a wide range of emotions. If the leaders of Textopolis wanted to give Gene a permanent “Meh!” expression, all they really had to do was make him watch this movie. Written by Eric Siegel, Mike White and director Tony Leondis, the script rashly invites comparison with Pixar’s Inside Out, only to remind us how much funnier and more resonant that movie was, and what folly it is to challenge Pixar at their own game. (Remember Antz?) Still, the animation is candy-colorful, the pop-music soundtrack is catchy and the dopey puns almost pass for wit. On the whole, there are worse ways to waste 86 minutes—but waste them you will. J.L.