A Piece of Cake Parent Guide

A Piece of Cake opens with some backstory. Years ago, elfkin in the German city of Cologne spent their nights sewing for the overwhelmed local tailor. They were never thanked for their meticulous work and when the tailor’s wife tried to ambush them, they left for good. The result? Generations of distrust towards humans while the elfkin built their communities underground in order to avoid their oversized neighbors.

Young Elfie (Madi Monroe) is starting to wonder if her fellow elfkin have lost the plot. The accident-prone elf is straining against her town’s rules and the requirement that everyone master a craft before they receive a full sized hat. (I think the hats make them look like garden gnomes instead of elves, but, hey, to each their own.) In a fit of rebellion, Elfie decides to head for the human world on the surface, find her passion, and master a craft. Along with some hapless friends, she winds up in modern Germany and discovers that baked goods are her destiny.

The elfkin quickly end up in a derelict baking shop owned by Theo (Sonny Hurrell). Discouraged by the collapse of his business, the master baker is being bullied by his jealous brother Bruno (Steve Jacob) who holds Theo’s debts and is planning to seize the bakery, bulldoze it, and build a baked goods factory. When Elfie hears this tale of woe, her goal is clear: she’s going to help Theo save his shop while also becoming a proficient baker, thereby earning her own tall hat.

The best thing about A Piece of Cake is its strong message about looking beyond prejudice and stereotypes. Elfie has been raised with some horrible preconceptions about humans: “Humans just can’t be nice. They are dastardly, unappreciative, and much too large.” “Humans eat elfkins for breakfast even with our hats.” “Humans are sneaky, lazy bums. There’s nothing to learn from them.” Fortunately, Elfie challenges these assertions,” How do you know? You don’t know any humans!” Elfie sets a good example for young viewers on challenging bigoted assumptions and learning to appreciate different kinds of people. In addition, she also teaches Theo and Bruno (and young audiences) to learn how to settle conflicts and work cooperatively.

On the downside (and it’s a pretty steep slope), A Piece of Cake has a phenomenally annoying quirk that I have never seen in another movie. The characters moan, groan, sigh, and generally hem and haw repeatedly through the film. It’s as irritating as bunking with a snoring roommate and by the end of the movie, every “Hmmm” felt like nails on a blackboard.

Minor details aside, the film’s biggest flaw is its full-throated endorsement of helping others so you can fulfill your own agenda. Once Elfie decides that she’s going to help Theo, nothing gets in her way. Not his objections, not even when he’s hospitalized for a concussion (caused by yet another Elfie-induced accident). Determined to achieve her goals, Elfie and her friends wheel the unconscious Theo out of the hospital and manipulate his limbs like a marionette so he can sell the goods that she has baked. It’s a disturbing look at a character who thinks she’s being selfless and helpful but who is actually behaving in a profoundly selfish manner, ignoring her friend’s need to heal and his right to have agency over his own life. This is a toxic relationship dynamic that should not be fed to unsuspecting child viewers.

On the surface, A Piece of Cake looks like the average low-level kids’ animated movie. It’s bright and colorful, the animation is suitably plastic, the songs are forgettable, the themes are ostensibly positive. But parents will want to be careful. Just as too many cupcakes can cause cavities, the themes in this storyline could teach young viewers some damaging relationship patterns.