When reviewing a movie like Shopkins World Vacation it’s always best to remember whom the core audience for the movie is: kids. The age range for this movie is 3+, and some have said that my maturity level often hovers close to that level, so that may be why I enjoyed it as much as I did. But my inability to grow up aside, the enjoyment factor of a kid’s movie for adults is also something that needs to be taken into consideration when writing a review, as odds are parents will find themselves sitting through this ad nauseam if their child is a Shopkins fan.
Going in, I fully expected this to be a bright, colourful movie meant to keep a child’s attention through visuals and not much more. My niece is a huge fan of Shopkins toys, and has quite a collection – though I wasn’t aware they had a TV show, let alone two movies (this is their second.) I haven’t seen any episodes of the TV show, but the movie does a good job of introducing every character in the opening few minutes, so even if you have no idea who or what a Shopkin is, that’s not really a big deal going in.
So Shopkins are basically food that’s alive. The toys tend to come in mystery containers (or checkout bags) and you open them and get surprised with what grocery item with a face you get to add to your collection. The world seems to have expanded from just that, and now there are various human characters that interact with the Shopkins as well.
The four main female humans are: Jessicake, Bubbleisha, Peppa-Mint and Donatina. On the food side of things, we have: Apple Blossom, Cheeky Chocolate, Lippy Lips, Strawberry Kiss, Buncho Bananas and Kooky Cookie. They each have their own quirks that make them unique, which is good as it adds some different levels of comedy to the movie. Now this is all extremely light humour, obviously. There are some slapstick moments, and quick one-liners, and while there’s a few jokes adults will chuckle at and kids won’t really understand, the story and characters are all clearly aimed at children.
Now, that said, I still find myself thinking back to some simple jokes and chuckling. That’s a good thing, because as mentioned above, your kids likely won’t want to watch this once and then put it on a shelf. No, odds are it’ll find its way into the DVD player time and time again, so it’s good to know that when it does, there are plenty of cute and funny moments that should keep everyone sitting through it entertained through repeat viewings.
The story focuses on Kooky Cookie, who is the one-millionth customer at the Shopkins grocery store (don’t really get me started on how the talking food still eats food that isn’t alive, as that part is best to just totally not think about at all) and wins a trip for her and all of her friends anywhere in the world they want to go. Kooky chooses to go to London to ride on a double-decker bus and meet Crown Jules, who is shopkins royalty.
The problem is, two Biscuit Bandits decide to steal the crown jewel from Crown Jules, and during their escape they plant the diamond on Kooky, who then gets pulled into the fashion world as the next hottest thing. This causes Kooky’s friends to have to search for her around the world in order to help clear her name, as Crown Jules believes that Kooky is the mastermind behind the heist.
Now, there’s no real logic to the story…which may have been clear when I mentioned it was about talking food hanging out with humans like it’s normal; however, it does progress in fun ways that don’t see parts of it really dragging during its 70 minute runtime.
Yes, Shopkins World Vacation surprised me and turned out to be quite a funny and entertaining trip around the world with some enjoyable characters. If your kids are fans of Shopkins, picking up this movie is a no-brainer, really. It also comes with a free Biscuit Bandit Shopkin figure inside the DVD case, which is a nice plus for collectors. If Shopkins aren’t really something you or your kids have found interest in, yet you’re looking for something light and fun to watch that won’t get old quick with repeat viewings, Shopkins World Vacation is just that.
The video is bright and colourful and the dialogue and sound mix come shining through clearly as well. The DVD does well delivering on both of these fronts.
On the special features front:
There’s not much one really needs for special features on a DVD like this, yet there are a couple of nice treats to find.
First, as mentioned above, the DVD comes with a Biscuit Bandit exclusive Shopkin figure, which is sure to go over well with the Shopkin fan in your life.
Next up, there’s an episode of the TV show called “Shopkins Bring Europe to Jessicake,” which sees the Shopkins throwing Jessicake a tea party. It’s a nice bonus to have a full episode on here for kids to watch once they’ve finished with the movie.
There are also two Karaoke videos for the two songs found in the movie that may have your kids singing along if they like that sort of thing!
Universal Pictures Presents Shopkins World Vacation. Directed by: Richard Bailey. Written by: Keith Wagner. Starring: Kate Murphy, Erika Harlacher, Cherami Leigh, Tara Sands, Cassandra Morris. Running time: 70 Minutes. Rating: G. Released on Blu-ray: Oct. 17, 2017.
