stevenpiziks (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
stevenpiziks) wrote2009-03-28 03:38 pm
stevenpiziks) wrote2009-03-28 03:38 pm
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Monsters vs. Aliens
The boys wanted to see it, so I took them.
Meh.
Dreamworks does this a lot with their animation. They take an idea with a lot of cool visuals in it and they barf it up on the screen without remembering that story and character actually make a good movie.
MvA starts when Susan gets smacked by a glowing meteor on her wedding day and grows to fifty feet tall. The government whisks her away to a special prison for other mutated monsters, including cockroach-y mad scientist, a blob without a brain, the missing link between fish and humans, and a godzilla-sized fuzzy bug which also doesn't have a brain. The trouble is, none of them have heart, either. A squiddy alien invades the earth, so the army offers the monsters their freedom if they repel the invasion.
The performances are decent, especially Reese Witherspoon as Susan, but the script is so poor, the movie dies. The plot wanders all over the place and never has a chance to build. There's absolutely, positively no suspense. I mean NONE. The bad guy is a buffoon villain, and not once is there a moment when it seems possible he might win.
Each character is supposed to have a talent and a flaw. I think. Blob dissolves everything but is really stupid. Missing link can swim really good but he scares people. Dr. Cockroach can build machines out of nothing but is insane. Insectosaurus is huge and strong but has no brain (oops, we did that one) and he's attracted to bright lights. I think each one is supposed to overcome his flaw throughout the course of the movie and use his talent, but it doesn't quite work out that way. They never really overcome their flaws and never fully use their talents. And oh yes--the "surprise" ending with Insectosaurus ain't a surprise. Not only did I see it coming, a little kid in the audience shouted it out long, long before it happened.
The dialogue is never very funny. Once in a great while it earns a chuckle. Usually it's just okay. Often it's embarrassingly bad. You could tell they were trying to be funny and failing.
Give this one a miss, folks. Especially since they charge extra for the 3D glasses.
Meh.
Dreamworks does this a lot with their animation. They take an idea with a lot of cool visuals in it and they barf it up on the screen without remembering that story and character actually make a good movie.
MvA starts when Susan gets smacked by a glowing meteor on her wedding day and grows to fifty feet tall. The government whisks her away to a special prison for other mutated monsters, including cockroach-y mad scientist, a blob without a brain, the missing link between fish and humans, and a godzilla-sized fuzzy bug which also doesn't have a brain. The trouble is, none of them have heart, either. A squiddy alien invades the earth, so the army offers the monsters their freedom if they repel the invasion.
The performances are decent, especially Reese Witherspoon as Susan, but the script is so poor, the movie dies. The plot wanders all over the place and never has a chance to build. There's absolutely, positively no suspense. I mean NONE. The bad guy is a buffoon villain, and not once is there a moment when it seems possible he might win.
Each character is supposed to have a talent and a flaw. I think. Blob dissolves everything but is really stupid. Missing link can swim really good but he scares people. Dr. Cockroach can build machines out of nothing but is insane. Insectosaurus is huge and strong but has no brain (oops, we did that one) and he's attracted to bright lights. I think each one is supposed to overcome his flaw throughout the course of the movie and use his talent, but it doesn't quite work out that way. They never really overcome their flaws and never fully use their talents. And oh yes--the "surprise" ending with Insectosaurus ain't a surprise. Not only did I see it coming, a little kid in the audience shouted it out long, long before it happened.
The dialogue is never very funny. Once in a great while it earns a chuckle. Usually it's just okay. Often it's embarrassingly bad. You could tell they were trying to be funny and failing.
Give this one a miss, folks. Especially since they charge extra for the 3D glasses.