Anthony Mackie and Martin Lawrence Play Toon Hi-Tops

The strangest thing about Sneaks, a new animated movie co-directed by Rob Edwards and Christopher Jenkins and written by Edwards (Captain America: Brave New World, The Princess and the Frog), isn’t that shoes become sentient beings, but that a stacked cast is squandered on such a plodding and predictable story. 

Anthony Mackie, Martin Lawrence, Swae Lee, Laurence Fishburne, Chloe Bailey and Macy Gray, among many others, lend their voices to the footwear and people that populate this fictionalized New York City. And while their performances are solid, they lack the energy one might reasonably expect from such a talented ensemble. 

The issues largely stem from a narrative reliant on, instead of merely riddled with, clichés. A story of a kid trying to achieve his dreams or a reunion between a shoe and his other half need not be deep, but it should feel inspired, whether through the animation or the twists and turns of the story, especially because Sneaks is targeted for a younger set. But the comedy lacks the stakes to engage more than passing interest. And while there are plenty of sole-related puns, the film is so frenetic in focus that most of them don’t really land. 

Sneaks opens on the day of the Sneakerhead Gala, a convention where rubber-sole shoe aficionados can admire the latest footwear and enter a raffle to win the hottest pair of kicks.

When we meet Edson (Lee), he’s in a car racing with his road-raging mother (Kiana Ledé) to the Manhattan event. He’s flipping through a magazine and eyeing a pair of Alchemy 24s, a highly-anticipated model of white sneakers with gold trimmings designed by Chris Paul (voiced by the basketball player himself). They are described as the “gold star” of shoes and Edson hopes he can wear them to his basketball game later that night, where he will naturally win the crowd and woo his crush Vanessa (Amirah Hall). 

At the convention center, a cavernous building buzzing with excited fans, Edson runs into infamous sneaker purveyor the Collector (Fishburne), rumored to have the largest collection of shoes in the country — maybe even the world. When the Collector — a burly figure clad in gear better suited for a hike than the city streets and always accompanied by his curious pit bull Mercury — buys 200 raffle tickets, Edson figures he’ll never win the Alchemy 24s.

Inside the shoe box, the coveted sneakers come to life. Their names are Ty (Mackie) and Maxine (Bailey), siblings with different aspirations. While Ty hopes the winner will keep the pair safe and in a climate-controlled chamber, Maxine wants to see the world and make a difference. She hopes the raffle will be won by someone who will actually wear them. 

Luck is on Maxine’s side because Edson wins the shoes, much to the surprise of everyone around him. The teenager is elated, especially because his current pair of sneakers are worn out. In an early scene, while he’s trying to impress Vanessa, the tip separates from the sole, leaving his sock-covered toes exposed and our protagonist on the ground.

Enraged by Edson’s win, the Collector — working on behalf of a mysterious figure called the Forager (Roddy Rich) — later that afternoon sneaks into the boy’s apartment and steals the pair. When Maxine realizes she and her brother are being kidnapped, she tries to convince Ty that they need to escape. They end up fighting, as siblings do, getting separated in the process. Ty lands in the streets of New York while Maxine finds herself trapped in a fancy apartment near Central Park West. 

So begins a frenzied, sometimes unfocused and rarely surprising adventure: Ty and Maxine are trying to reunite, Edson is attempting to find his stolen shoes (but mostly sulking) and the Collector is looking for Ty so he can hand over the Alchemy 24s to the Forager. While there are many threads in Sneaks, almost none of them summon enough interest to make this tepid ride earn our investment. 

When Ty meets JB (Martin Lawrence), another shoe who lost his other half many years ago, the film kind of picks up. The wily sneaker, all black with a design that resembles real-life Air Jordans, sees Ty as a mark and wants to steal the naive shoe’s bling — the diamonds and gold accents on his body.

Terrace Martin’s score is funky and cool while Mustard, whom many will know as the producer of hits by Kendrick Lamar, Drake and many other musicians, contributes memorable earworms that soundtrack the pair’s travels through the bustling metropolis (a kind of hollowed-out counterpart to Miles Morales’ Spider-Verse).

They catch rides on skateboards and compete with rival shoes on the basketball courts in exchange for information. While there are some humorous moments in this low-risk buddy comedy, even JB doesn’t seem wholly committed to treating Ty like a real mark. 

Most of Sneaks, unfortunately, feels perfunctory, losing steam quickly despite running only 80ish minutes, minus credits. The project prompts questions about what went wrong in brainstorming sessions rather than scoring points for finding new ways into a familiar story.

While the animation is serviceable, the failure to experiment with sneaker design is a missed opportunity. The Alchemy 24s are introduced as a sneaker to be worshipped, but those and the other shoes featured throughout the film, lack detail. There’s an overall shortage of playfulness to Sneaks, evident every step of the way.