There are plenty of ridiculously silly, colourful and imaginative animated classics out there, but perhaps none have the same psychedelic ‘out there’ feel that Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs has. The sequel – the one with a ‘2’ on the end – is coming out tonight (Sept 27) and it looks like the box office might be covered in Italian balls of minced beef.

Cloudy with a Chance of MeatballsThe weird and wonderful world of Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs

It was this weekend last year that Sony Pictures Animation’s Hotel Transylvania broke the September opening weekend record with a $42.5 million. As we hit the fall season, summer’s gone, and people need their sprits lifted. It’s the perfect time for animated films to come along and inject some colour into an increasingly sullen climate.

So it looks as though Cloudy 2 will top the box office, despite not enthralling the critics like its predecessor did. It’s settled upon a 62% aggregate score on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to the first film’s 87%.

“Kids will chuckle, for sure. But parents who were pleasantly surprised by the original film's intelligence will miss Lord and Miller's guiding hands, as what once felt so funny now leaves a stale taste,” said The Washington Post.

The Associated Press was us all to gain some perspective. They write: “Some might find these tiresome, but let's just note here that this is a kid movie, and KIDS LOVE PUNS. So they laugh at ''There's a leek in the boat.'' And they laugh even more the second time.”

"There's not a surprise or moment of tension to be found here, but the film is all energy and color that makes the discomfort of 3-D glasses seem worth it,” said USA Today’s Mike Clark.

Watch the Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs trailer

But despite the lukewarm reviews, the fact that Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs opened to a solid $30.2 million in 2009 means a sizable fan base will already have plans to go and see it tonight. So you can expect Rush, Prisoners and Don Jon to sit behind it when the weekend’s box office figures are released.