| Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Bradley Raymond Jimmy Hayward Thor Freudenthal |
| Produced by | Audrey Wells Stephen Swofford Jenni Magee-Cook |
| Screenplay by | Jonathan Aibel Glenn Berger |
| Story by | Jonathan Aibel Glenn Berger Bradley Raymond Jeffrey M. Howard |
| Starring | Sarah Silverman James Patrick Stuart Elizabeth Banks Tom Hanks Cameron Boyce Ginnifer Goodwin Ed O'Neill Michael J. Fox |
| Music by | Hans Zimmer John Powell |
| Cinematography | Matthias Koenigswieser |
| Edited by | Jeremy Milton Mark Solomon Anna Catalano |
| Production companies |
Walt Disney Pictures Dice Productions |
| Distributed by | Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures |
| Release date | July 26, 2017 |
| Running time | 92 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $125 million |
| Box office | $1.267 billion |
Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July is a 2017 American animated adventure comedy musical film produced by Dice Productions and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. Directed by Bradley Raymond, Jimmy Hayward, and Thor Freudenthal from a screenplay by Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger, it is the sequel to 2016's Vanellope & Friends and the second installment in the Vanellope & Friends franchise. Sarah Silverman, Tom Hanks, Cameron Boyce, Ginnifer Goodwin, Ed O'Neill, and Michael J. Fox reprise their roles from the first film alongside newcomers James Patrick Stuart and Elizabeth Banks. The film follows Vanellope von Schweetz and her newest friend, Piglet, as they are swept away from Anythingville Beach, which leads to their ensuing race to return home in time for the Anythingville Fireworks Show.
Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July was released in the United States on July 26 2017. The film received positive reviews from critics and was a box office success, grossing over $1.267 billion worldwide against a production budget of $125 million; it became the fourth highest-grossing film of 2017, the the seventh highest-grossing animated film, and the first Dice film to pass $1 billion worldwide at the box office, and held the title of being the highest-grossing Vanellope & Friends film, until Vanellope & Friends: Time Travel overtook it in 2019. It was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. A sequel, Vanellope & Friends: Christmas, was released on December 8, 2017.
Plot[]
On Independence Day after the events of the first film, Vanellope von Schweetz prepares for the Anythingville 4th Of July Fireworks Show with her friends, consisting of Woody, Lawrence Broderick West, Judy Hopps, Hank, Iggy, and Mr. Ziploc, is at 10:00 PM at night at Anythingville Beach. Vanellope then meets Piglet, a pig who has the ability to turn things and make things out of pink. The kids at the beach trigger severe gelotophobia he suffers from, but Vanellope takes it upon herself to help Piglet get used to the party. However, when she discovers his powers, she isolates him to try to guard the Fireworks Show from his powers and keep him from being laughed at. At 12:00 PM at noon, Piglet reluctantly shows his handmade teddy bear pig to the kids. Thinking that no one needs anything to do with the teddy pig, Vanellope tries to dispose of it through a vacuum tube used for delivering letters and invitations to guests to the Fireworks Show, but a struggle causes the July Island Orbs to fall from their holder, rendering the July Islands lifeless. The tube then abducts the Island Orbs, along with Vanellope and Piglet.
Vanellope and Piglet try to cross a suspension bridge to the beach, but the July 1st Statue gradually falls into the Black Chasm, an abyss with a sandy bottom where things disappear. Vanellope and Piglet walk into the forest, but by 4:00 PM, they run into an anthropomorphic plush doll named Martha Martha (July 4th's former mascot), who suggests taking the train to the beach. On a tour throughout A Carnival of Imagination, a traveling carnival, the July 2nd Statue and Martha Martha's flying broomstick (which runs on the Martha Martha theme song) fall into the Black Chasm. Martha Martha reveals her backstory: she started as a doll at a toy store who was purchased and played with by a girl named Tara, until she got lost on a family trip to the carnival, and by the time she got to there, Tara and her family had already left. She starts crying, but Piglet is able to cheer her up, much to Vanellope's surprise. Meanwhile, back on the beach, Woody, Judy, Hank, Lawrence, Mr. Ziploc, and Iggy burrow a helicopter and pursue Vanellope and Piglet into the forest to find them and help them get back to the beach.
At the train station, Vanellope, Piglet, and Martha spend $21.09 on a train ride, since each ticket costs $7.30. During the ride, Piglet explains his backstory: A drop of Anythingville's rare Pink Moon fell from the sky, and, nearby a farm, sprouted a pink flower with the same powers as Piglet. His dad and a few of his friends found and uprooted the flower, which healed his ill and pregnant wife with pink medicine. Piglet was given birth to as a healthy baby piglet with the powers. However, it was one day at school when Piglet presented the teddy pig during show and tell, the other piglets laughed at him, because they said it was "no pig thing". Feeling like an unwanted nobody, he ran away from the farm and never returned; Piglet has lived his life alone in fear ever since.
The July 3rd Statue subsequently falls into the Black Chasm, taking the train with it. Vanellope vents frustration with Piglet for making everything worse, saying the predicament was the result of his fears, and deserts him. Desperate to get back to the beach, she and tries to use a vacuum tube portal, but the ground beneath the tube collapses, breaking it and plunging Vanellope into the Black Chasm, with Martha Martha falling in as well. In the Black Chasm, a crestfallen Vanellope begins to lose hope and breaks into tears. She notices Piglet's teddy pig she tried to throw away and comes to finally understand the true purpose of Piglet's powers: to entertain and emotionally support friends and loved ones who need help. Martha Martha and Vanellope try to fly the broom out of the Black Chasm. After a few failed attempts, Martha Martha jumps off the broom to allow Vanellope to escape on the last attempts, then bids her farewell before dying by fading away.
Vanellope finds Piglet, but he deems himself a danger to Anythingville and flees her. The July 4th Statue begins to crumble, and the emotionally insecurities of his fears have resulted in his powers spreading all over A Carnival of Imagination and turning it pink. Knowing this was her fault, Vanellope chases Piglet as she follows him into the now pink-covered A Carnival of Imagination. She climbs up a ferris wheel and jumps on the top awning of the carosuel, catching him in the air. Woody, Lawrence, Judy, Hank, Mr. Ziploc, and Iggy open their helicopter door and let Vanellope and Piglet on board the helicopter. To the others' astonishment, Vanellope apologizes to Piglet for her earlier treatment towards him, and reforms him by explaining to him his powers' purpose and making him realizing that love, compassion, and support are way better than fear. Piglet lets go of his fear, which reverses the pink spread.
Vanellope gives Piglet his teddy pig, and she, Piglet, and the gang fly the helicopter back to the beach. Back at the beach, Piglet reinstalls the July Island Orbs Vanellope allows him to turn pink, restoring the July 4th Islands (now pink) and saving the 4th Of July. Everyone praises Piglet and Vanellope as heroes for saving the 4th of July. Piglet, no longer afraid of being laughed at, joins the Anythingville Fireworks Show celebration, ready to show compassion and support for the friends and loved ones around him.
Cast[]
- Sarah Silverman as Vanellope von Schweetz, a resident of Anythingville.
- James Patrick Stuart as Piglet, a gelotopohbic but good-hearted resident of Anythingville who can turn things pink as a way of entertaining those who need help.
- Elizabeth Banks as Martha Martha, an anthropomorphic fun-loving and optimistic plush doll and the former July 4th mascot.
- Tom Hanks as Woody, a resident of Anythingville and Vanellope's best friend.
- Cameron Boyce as Lawrence Broderick Pierce, the mayor of Anythingville.
- Ginnifer Goodwin as Judy Hopps, a resident of Anythingville.
- Ed O'Neill as Hank, a resident of Anythingville.
- Michael J. Fox as Mr. Ziploc, an anthropomorphic plastic blow and the news messenger of Anythingville.
- Audrey Wells as Iggy, a green iguana and Vanellope's pet.
- Clint Howard as Ticket man
- Andy Dick as Conductor
Box office[]
In The United States, Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July was released alongside The Dark Tower and the wide opening of Kidnap, and was projected to gross anywhere around $345--370 million in its opening weekend. It closed from theaters on December 3, 2017, having to have grossed $511 million in the United States and Canada, and $756 million in other territories, for a worldwide total of $1.267 billion. Produced on a $125 million budget, the film was a commercial success.
Critical response[]
Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July. The film has a 90% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes based on 240 reviews. The site's consensus reads, "Vanellope & Friends: 4th Of July is a very exciting sequel that, while sometimes not quite close to living up to the original, manages to recapture its predecessor's sense of charm while also providing entertainment for younger viewers". Metacritic calculated a score of 75 out of 100 based on 50 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film a grade of "A+" on an A+ to F scale, the same grade earned by the first film.