Cuphead: Don't Deal With The Devil

Cuphead: The Movie is a 2017 American animated action adventure comedy film produced by the Moldenhauer Brothers, Edwin Kasper and Rodney Erickson and directed by Martin Ransohoff from Filmways Pictures. In this film, Cuphead and Mugman fight a series of bosses in order to repay a debt to the devil. The film was heavily inspired by the works of 1930s cartoonists such as Max Fleischer's Fleischer Studios, and sought to keep the works' subversive and surrealist qualities.

Plot
On the fictional Inkwell Isle, Cuphead and his brother Mugman are two fun-loving kids who live under the watchful eye of Elder Kettle. Against the elder's warnings, the brothers wander into the Devil's Casino run by King Dice. When the brothers go on a winning streak, King Dice calls upon the Devil who raises the stakes. However, Cuphead rolls snake eyes and he and Mugman must give up their souls. However, the Devil makes a deal with them: collect the contracts of the other inhabitants of Inkwell Isle who have lost their souls and he might let the brothers off the hook. They visit Kettle who gives them a potion that allows them to fire blasts from their fingers.

The brothers travel around Inkwell Isle earning contracts from residents who have lost their souls to King Dice and the Devil. Eventually, they make it back to the Casino where King Dice reveals that he too lost a bet, presumably about whether or not Cuphead and Mugman would be able to retrieve the contracts, and fights the two only to lose. The Devil then asks for the contracts and in return they will "join his team". At this point the player can choose whether to hand the contracts over or not. If they say yes, the Devil turns Cuphead and Mugman into his sinister lackeys and the game ends. If they say no, the Devil then battles the brothers.

After a ridiculous and over-the-top battle, Cuphead and Mugman come out victorious with the Devil begrudgingly promising to let them go. The brothers toss the soul contracts in the furnace and race home. They tell the residents that they are no longer under control of the Devil and they all cheer the brothers for their heroic deed.

Production
Production began on July 6, 2015. Like the game, the film was inspired by cartoons such as that of Fleischer Studios, Disney, and cartoonists Ub Iwerks, Grim Natwick, and Willard Bowsky, particularly their most "subversive and surrealist" elements. Chad Moldenhauer and Martin Ransohoff called Fleischer Studios "the magnetic north of his art style".

Reception
Cuphead: The Movie was released to positive reviews from critics, with the theatrical, DVD and Blu-Ray releases garnering ratings of "universal acclaim" and "generally favorable reviews", respectively, according to review aggregator website Metacritic.