Story

The little town of Smelliville has a big problem – a rubbish dump on the edge of town that smells so bad that no tourist wants to visit. Even Smelliville’s residents avoid stepping outside because of the stench.

The Mayor’s wife (Tracey Grey), however, thinks that she has a solution. She approves construction tycoon Mr Hammer’s (Tom Zahner) plan to build a Wellness Temple in place of the dump. Little does she know that there are two problems. The first is that Mr Hammer is a ruthless crook interested only in his own profit. The second is that the dump has new residents – the Ogglies, friendly little green creatures that feast on rubbish.

The Mayor’s son Max (Ben Young) and his best friend Lotta (Lily Held) are determined to save the Ogglies and educate the town about the benefits of recycling waste.

Themes

Animated movie; based on children’s book series; comedy and adventure; recycling

Violence

The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville has some mild cartoon violence. For example:

• People have rubbish thrown at them.
• Mr Hammer’s henchmen vandalise the Ogglies’ dwellings to intimidate the Ogglies and make them leave.
• Mr Hammer threatens to run over the Mayor’s wife with a digger.
• Mr Hammer holds Max captive and ties him up in a van.
• Mr Hammer plans to blow up the dump with no concern for the Ogglies.

Sexual references

There are no sexual references in The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville.

Alcohol, drugs and other substances

The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville shows some use of substances. For example, the Mayor’s wife seems to be addicted to ‘anti-stress drops’. She gulps them down many times when she feels stressed, and she’s upset and anxious when she runs out. She secretly obtains the drops from a scientist’s lab, which makes them seem a lot like an illegal drug.

Nudity and sexual activity

There’s no nudity and sexual activity in The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville.

Product placement

There’s no product placement in The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville.

Coarse language

The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville has some mild coarse language and name-calling, including ‘damn’, ‘darn’, ‘nutcase’ and ‘rotten rat’.

Ideas to discuss with your children

The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville is an animated movie based on German author Erhard Dietl’s book series.

Young children will probably enjoy The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville, but they might also be grossed out by the amount of toilet humour, which includes references to stench, dirt, burping and farting. There are positive messages about empathy for and inclusion of outsiders, the dangers of ruthless capitalism, and the environmental benefits of waste recycling. But there are also many problematic behaviours, like primary school-age children lying to and tricking their parents, sneaking out, breaking into places, stealing things, and riding a bike while fiddling with a phone. Characters also consume toxic substances. For example, the Ogglies’ diet consists of rubbish. After an Oggly drinks a bottle of chain oil, a pigeon says, ‘Kids, don’t try this at home – only Ogglies can eat that stuff!’ And most concerningly, Max’s mother is clearly dependent on a designer drug. There’s also a random mix of accents ranging from posh British to broad American, even within a family.

Some of the points mentioned above make The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville unsuitable for a very young audience and warrant parental guidance for children aged 5 -8 years.

The main messages from The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville are that everyone deserves a chance and that it’s important to try and see the world through other people’s eyes.

Values in The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville that you could reinforce with your children include open-mindedness, tolerance, acceptance, empathy, friendship, teamwork, resourcefulness and recycling.

The Ogglies: Welcome to Smelliville could also give you the chance to talk with your children about issues like the:

• downsides of modern technology – for example, a mother is totally absorbed in playing a game on her phone rather than paying attention to her child; Max uses his phone and tablet to trick his parents and do things he isn’t supposed to do; and children put themselves and others in danger by recklessly riding their bikes while fiddling with their phone
• balance between supporting children’s without smothering them, and also respecting and acknowledging children’s interests and talents.