Review: ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’

Is any animation studio every going to topple PIXAR?   Not that we’re looking for someone to do that, but DreamWorks is coming closer with every cinematic effort.   With ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens,’ it has become evident, to me, anyway, that there is something DreamWorks does better than PIXAR ever could do.

It has something to do with comedic timing.   Past DreamWorks animated films like ‘Kung Fu Panda’ and ‘Madagascar’ had superb comedic timing.   I can’t imagine the difficulty of pulling something like this off in the animated world.   ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ does this brilliantly.   I can’t think of a better animated film that has ever had better comedic timing than ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens.’

Much of this stems from the voice talents comprised within this film.   Reese Witherspoon, perky as ever, brings a real spirit to her lead character, that of a girl who, after being crushed by a falling meteor, grows to ginormous size and becomes Ginormica.   Witherspoon, while funny, is playing the straight-man to every other monster the US government has been hiding away for years, though.

The funniest of them is Seth Rogen as BOB (short for Bicarbonate Ostylezene Benzoate).   BOB is a Blob-like creature who doesn’t think you need a brain to survive and who forgets to breath sometimes.   Just having BOB break out in Rogen’s infectious laugh occasionally does the trick.

However, it’s not just BOB in this film that brings the funny in truckloads.   Every character is hilarious.   Dr. Cockroach (voiced by Hugh Laurie), The Missing Link (voiced by Will Arnett), and even the General who serves as all of these monsters’ warden (voiced by Kiefer Sutherland) all have at least half a dozen moments where they make you laugh out loud.   Rainn Wilson voices the invading Gallaxhar, and his Schrute-ness is in full effect.

The comedy found herein, however, doesn’t rely on voice talent alone.   The whole slew of screenwriters involved have crafted a charming and equally interesting story.   While a lot of the humor deals in the usage of   Gallaxhar’s invasion comes rather late in the game, and a little more Wilson would have benefited the film, but it’s a minor detail to complain about.

A lot of work went into the visuals, as well as the editing. Â  DreamWorks has never been at the head of the class when it comes to visuals. Â  PIXAR still rules in that category. Â  However, the computer animation on ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ is highly serviceable enough that it’s not a distraction from the story or the comedy. Â  It certainly looks grand in 3D.

And, while I’m on the 3D subject, I’ll say ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ is not a film that has to be seen in 3D. Â  Unlike ‘Coraline’, which was a film that benefited greatly from its 3D, ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ can be enjoyed equally with or without the images coming out at you. Â  There were only a few times where the film becomes conscious of its gimmick, where someone purposefully throws something at you for the sake of showing off the 3D. Â  These times, while a bit cringe-worthy, are fleeting, so that negative can be brushed off pretty easily.

I will say the kids will eat the 3D experience up. Â  Just in the opening credits, the kids will literally ooh and aah, and you can’t help but get a smile on your face when you hear a hundred kids scream at the sight of a meteor shooting past.

Funny and amazing in all the right aspects, ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ is an experience for everyone in your family.   Your kids will enjoy the hilarity of the sight gags and the amazement of the visuals.   However, the film never dumbs itself down to only work on a child-like level.   There are still plenty of jokes and visuals for adults to enjoy equally as much.   While there are better animated comedies that have come before it (‘The Incredibles’ is one such film), ‘Monsters Vs. Aliens’ could very well be the funniest animated film I’ve ever seen.

‘Monsters vs. Aliens’ [PG] opens today in theaters everywhere.

[Overall: 4.5 stars out of 5]