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Monsters vs. Aliens vs. Me
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When I first read the synopsis of this flick I thought I may be in for a snooze-fest. Then I realized it's an animation film and the more wacky the storyline the more entertaining this will be for me.
Well, that wasn't exactly the case this time around. Dreamwork's "Monsters vs. Aliens" gave an eye-catching stage for us to look at but nothing new or different beyond that. I thought perhaps it's because I'm knocking on the door of 30 years old that I can't get into this type of flick anymore. Then I realized the kids around me weren't that amused either. Yes, I was that guy in the theater, by myself with kids and their parents surrounding me. A small perk when reviewing movies that you probably wouldn't see.
I have nothing against the new animation flicks though. I actually thought this would be fun and a good change-of-pace for me. The positive as I mentioned was the animation and scenery were very well done. The sound was dead on and caught all the details of what was going on in every scene. I did laugh a couple times during the second half of the flick (with all the kids). However, the first half of the film I found myself not interested at all in the story and started thinking about how some of the people in theater can eat popcorn at 10:30 in the morning. Seriously Tampa? I was disturbed.
The film tried to pay homage to famous scenes in cinema history. We had a re-enactment of the end of "JAWS" on the Golden Gate Bridge scene. We also had references to "Independence Day" and even "Spaceballs." I was able to pick out those scenes right away but this film's target audience is kids. This went way over there heads and even for the adults it didn't do anything to enhance the film. The characters were interesting to watch and looked great. Even the evil alien who had a mouth like Steven Tyler (cheap Aerosmith reference I know) was good. When the time came to open there mouths it was just normal dialog for the most part. I didn't feel any passion save for Reese Witherspoon and the guy who did the Major's voice.
Usually I would give you a synopsis of what the film is about but it is so plain and simple all you have to do is read the one posted on Web Site here. The laughs were few and far between and my basis on that is simply listening to the kids in the theater with me. I laughed about 3-4 times (one may have been forced...didn't want the people around me to think I was a cyborg). It's almost as if the movie was taken itself too seriously. Serious to the point that it forgot it was a 3-D feature and they didn't put in the cheap 3-D effects. I don't think you will get anymore enjoyment in seeing this in 3-D or IMAX. Save a couple bucks and just catch the good ol' regular screening if you want to go after reading this gem of a review. Compared to other films Dreamworks has done, this is barely average in my humble opinion (and yes I've seen most of them).
Now for a quick side-bar if you don't mind... 
A question that comes up with some people is whether it matters who's voice is attached to the animated characters? It's a question I've asked myself in the past and going through the backlog of animation flicks I have seen I came up with this rock-solid answer...rarely (HA!).
I'm pretty particular in what movies I see but it is usually based on what the plot is rather than who's in it. Sure I have my opinion on who's a good actor or actress but I always put story over who is in the film. Same can be said for animation in my opinion. Unless you have a very recognizable delivery like a Chris Rock (Bee Movie) or Gilbert Gottfried (Aladdin) then I'm not sure it weighs heavily if the movie is more enjoyable. If you recall Sebastian the crab in Disney's "The Little Mermaid", he had a very unique voice that enhanced the character. For me it doesn't matter if it was a well-known actor or a guy I never heard of doing the voice of the entertaining crab. As long as the sense of timing is there it's all the same to me. A big draw for animation is whether it looks good in the trailers. If that is accomplished people will see it.
Now do I agree it is a better marketing strategy to have established actors doing the voices to help sell the movie? Yes indeed. Does it make the movie better? Rarely.
So if you're in the Tampa Bay area and want to know which theaters have 3-D screenings of "Monsters vs. Aliens" check out the link here. This will bring you to Yahoo! movies and give you a list of theaters. Click on the one that is near you and see the theater info and/or showtime. The movie is in all theaters but only a handful have 3-D and/or IMAX capability. I'd always take an extra minute or two and call to verify the showtime you want is 3-D. Obviously, any theater that says it's an IMAX has the IMAX screening. I was at the AMC Veterans 24 and not all the showings are 3-D.
That is all for this week my friends. One of my articles next week will be about books that have been on the best-seller list over the years and should be made into a movie. As for what else I will write about who knows. For those still watching the NCAA Tournament...LET'S GO ORANGE!
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