Monsters vs Aliens (2009)
Whether or not DreamWorks is still trying to disassemble Pixar’s ambitious but more family-oriented projects with a more adolescent brand of animation is difficult to say (although you would most likely think yes); regardless, it’s certainly entertaining to view the competition or experience the product, and Monsters vs Aliens (2009) is no exception. Directors Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon take us on another DreamWorks rollercoaster, this time around it’s the supernatural, and yes the title is true, DreamWorks is killing two birds with one stone!
The story is obviously simple, but that doesn’t really matter because all we really want to see is a fight between monsters and aliens. We begin with Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon), who eventually becomes Ginormica when a “special” meteorite lands on her at her wedding, causing her to rapidly grow tenfold! Not surprisingly, the US government is on her like, well, the US government. Under the orders of General W.R. Monger (Kiefer Sutherland), she is taken to Area 51 where she meets a cast of other monsters that have been collected since the 1950s, including the doctor cockroach Dr. Cockroach Ph.D. (a back-to-British Hugh Laurie), the creature The Missing Link (Will Arnett), the giant bug Insectosaurus (absolutely awesome and voiceless), and the blob B.O.B. (Seth Rogen). Each monster, of course, has its own amusing back-story, as told by Monger. Unbeknownst to all of them, in a galaxy far far away, the evil alien Gallaxhar (Rainn Wilson) decides to engage Earth because it possesses an essential material for his conquest of the universe. As you can probably imagine, this is that same substance that crashed into Susan. Once it’s clear that it’s going to take everything Earth has to defeat Gallaxhar, The US President Hathaway (Stephen Colbert) calls on Monger and his monsters to save the day; let the games begin!
So what’s good and what’s bad? Well, for the most part it’s quite good. The animation is no doubt thrilling (as we’ve come to expect), and the story moves through its medium with a carefree excitement; this film is a lot of fun, simple as that (and the battle for San Francisco… WOWZERS!). And to top it all off we have monsters fighting aliens! But all in the space of 94 minutes? Is that right? I’m almost sure I could watch something like that forever, but that is not the case here. Truth be told, there is not enough screen time given to the monsters fighting the aliens, and everything feels super rushed, which is something that keeps this film from truly achieving the OMG!! M V. A!!! OMG!!! status. It’s not necessarily like too much time was allotted to another less exciting section of the film, it’s just that the film is too short and unfulfilling, which is ultimately disappointing. It’s also interesting to note that while the voice characterization is well cast, virtually none of the voice actors actually come through, the sole exception here being Rogen, who’s absolutely hilarious B.O.B. steals the show. Even Stephen Colbert’s president Hathaway can’t fully bloom, because while the character itself is fantastic (especially with the “Axel F” bit), Colbert’s familiarities are surprisingly unable to transcend and you wouldn’t know it was him if no one told you. This issue, while not technically a negative, actually serves to decrease the accessibility of the characters, because we all love hearing our favorite actors channel themselves through fantastical avatars!
All in all, it’s been a bit of a rough go for DreamWorks over the last few years. Despite having commercial successes, they’ve lost the Oscar to Pixar for the last two years straight (not since Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit in 2005, and that wasn’t really them), and after Pixar’s WALL-E (2008) (my pick for the best film of 2008, and certainly one of the most important films in animation), DreamWorks certainly has metric ton of catching up to do. Some might find this as taking pot shots at Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. (2001) (which is mostly inaccurate yet has confused some people/idiots!); but then again, DreamWorks is to blame for Antz (1998) against A Bug’s Life (1998). Fortunately, the film is more aligned to the Shrek movies, but without the reflexive bravado. In the end, Monsters vs Aliens is another valiant attempt by DreamWorks at striking back against Pixar, but it might not be enough to secure the Oscar. In my opinion, it doesn’t deserve it, but we will all have to wait and see how Up (2009) performs before we can truly judge this quite enjoyable film.
The story is obviously simple, but that doesn’t really matter because all we really want to see is a fight between monsters and aliens. We begin with Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon), who eventually becomes Ginormica when a “special” meteorite lands on her at her wedding, causing her to rapidly grow tenfold! Not surprisingly, the US government is on her like, well, the US government. Under the orders of General W.R. Monger (Kiefer Sutherland), she is taken to Area 51 where she meets a cast of other monsters that have been collected since the 1950s, including the doctor cockroach Dr. Cockroach Ph.D. (a back-to-British Hugh Laurie), the creature The Missing Link (Will Arnett), the giant bug Insectosaurus (absolutely awesome and voiceless), and the blob B.O.B. (Seth Rogen). Each monster, of course, has its own amusing back-story, as told by Monger. Unbeknownst to all of them, in a galaxy far far away, the evil alien Gallaxhar (Rainn Wilson) decides to engage Earth because it possesses an essential material for his conquest of the universe. As you can probably imagine, this is that same substance that crashed into Susan. Once it’s clear that it’s going to take everything Earth has to defeat Gallaxhar, The US President Hathaway (Stephen Colbert) calls on Monger and his monsters to save the day; let the games begin!
So what’s good and what’s bad? Well, for the most part it’s quite good. The animation is no doubt thrilling (as we’ve come to expect), and the story moves through its medium with a carefree excitement; this film is a lot of fun, simple as that (and the battle for San Francisco… WOWZERS!). And to top it all off we have monsters fighting aliens! But all in the space of 94 minutes? Is that right? I’m almost sure I could watch something like that forever, but that is not the case here. Truth be told, there is not enough screen time given to the monsters fighting the aliens, and everything feels super rushed, which is something that keeps this film from truly achieving the OMG!! M V. A!!! OMG!!! status. It’s not necessarily like too much time was allotted to another less exciting section of the film, it’s just that the film is too short and unfulfilling, which is ultimately disappointing. It’s also interesting to note that while the voice characterization is well cast, virtually none of the voice actors actually come through, the sole exception here being Rogen, who’s absolutely hilarious B.O.B. steals the show. Even Stephen Colbert’s president Hathaway can’t fully bloom, because while the character itself is fantastic (especially with the “Axel F” bit), Colbert’s familiarities are surprisingly unable to transcend and you wouldn’t know it was him if no one told you. This issue, while not technically a negative, actually serves to decrease the accessibility of the characters, because we all love hearing our favorite actors channel themselves through fantastical avatars!
All in all, it’s been a bit of a rough go for DreamWorks over the last few years. Despite having commercial successes, they’ve lost the Oscar to Pixar for the last two years straight (not since Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit in 2005, and that wasn’t really them), and after Pixar’s WALL-E (2008) (my pick for the best film of 2008, and certainly one of the most important films in animation), DreamWorks certainly has metric ton of catching up to do. Some might find this as taking pot shots at Pixar’s Monsters, Inc. (2001) (which is mostly inaccurate yet has confused some people/idiots!); but then again, DreamWorks is to blame for Antz (1998) against A Bug’s Life (1998). Fortunately, the film is more aligned to the Shrek movies, but without the reflexive bravado. In the end, Monsters vs Aliens is another valiant attempt by DreamWorks at striking back against Pixar, but it might not be enough to secure the Oscar. In my opinion, it doesn’t deserve it, but we will all have to wait and see how Up (2009) performs before we can truly judge this quite enjoyable film.
3.5/5
S. McSmoke-Smoke
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