Hola all. Massawyrm here.
Of all the footage I got to see this past weekend, Monsters vs. Aliens is the one that left me a little cold and unsure about what to think of the upcoming whole. I like the idea. I mean I REALLY like the idea. An animated film about an alien invasion being fought off by 50’s B Movie monsters is so right up my alley that it’s not even funny. That said, it’s a Dreamworks animated film. And those are decidedly hit or miss.
At first glance this feels closer to Kung Fu Panda than say A Shark’s Tale or Madagascar Back 2 Africa. It’s smart, a lot of the comedy is clever and the concept is just killer. But one sequence in particular turned me off in a big way. Ever since pop culture humor crept into children’s films in the late 90’s to serve as a way to amuse parents while tickling the kids, we’ve seen a glut of references for the sake of referencing. Occasionally is can be very funny. Other times…it simply exists. Such is the case with one joke here in which the President (played very amusingly by Stephen Colbert) gets up in from of the alien ship and starts playing the communication tune for Close Encounters of the Third Kind. But then the very excitable President gets carried away…and starts playing Axel F. from Beverly Hills Cop. And more than just a few bars of it. It was just…there. It wasn’t really cute or funny. It just was. And with several other really good jokes in the mix, it stuck out like a sore thumb – and worried me about the humor in the rest of the film.
Immediately following that was a very funny scene in which we are introduced to the Monsters in the War Room. This is where Colbert really shines as he gets to play around with General W.R. Monger (Kiefer Sutherland.) This is what left me with some hope – but even then not all the jokes were as sharp as they could be.
Finally, we were treated to an extended fight sequence, as out intrepid monster heroes take on a gigantic alien robot/space ship. This was the scene that really won over the crowd, as the 49’11¾” woman uses cars as roller skates over the Golden Gate Bridge and the rest of the team tries to find a way to neutralize the enemy. It was pretty fast paced, fun stuff with moments that were evocative of The Incredibles.
But no matter how cool everything was (even in 3D), everytime I reflected on it, I saw the Ronald Reagan president dancing and playing Axel F. And it just made me think of all the Shrek 3’s and Madagascar’s rather than the Kung Fu Panda’s. I really hope this is the latter rather than the formers. It really is a great idea.
Until next time friends, smoke ‘em if ya got ‘em.
Massawyrm
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