Meet The Small Potatoes

Sometimes you come across films that are so inconspicuous that they just fly under the radar, especially when they do not see an official release of any sort and just go straight to DVD. Meet The Small Potatoes is one such release.

Meet The Small Potatoes is a kids mockumentary about a popular singing group called The Sweet Potatoes, and yes, they really are sweet potatoes. As the mockumentary begins we watch interviews with other small vegetables who boast about their love for The Sweet Potatoes, starting with their life on a small rural farm before making their way to New Orleans where they start to capitalize on their talents for singing.

As the mockumentary rolls on we see the band rise into stardom and fall out of the limelight as in-fighting between band members tears them and their fan-base in twine. References are made towards bands like The Beatles, The Village People, The Ramones, and more. Adults will get a kick out of the references and more then likely it will fly over kids heads, but still make an impact.

I thought this film was fascinating. The film style reminded me of Dot and The Kangaroo where cartoon characters are placed before real life backdrops. What makes it so fascinating is how the characters become so immersed in the real life backdrops that you can’t tell where the backdrops end and the characters begin. It won’t take a whole lot of imagination for kids to see The Sweet Potatoes as real life characters.

Another awesome aspect of the film is that the film style is so cool. Scratches, lines, and other imperfections make for an interesting look that helps the immersion of the two worlds. Of course the whole film has these imperfections and at times it gets a bit grating. Still, the adorable voices, the great music, the awesome look to the film makes it very interesting and ups the replay value.

I did have some qualms with the film in which one potato makes some remarks about his weight and being big boneded and another potato says he’s overweighted. Maybe it was a potato joke but kids might find that a bit hurtful, especially if they have weight problems they can comprehend. There was also a reference in there to Studio 54. Good luck explaining that. Other then that I was fascinated and enjoyed this little hidden gem more then I thought I would. Well worth grabbing up when you can find it. Enjoy.