DreamWorks Animation has had big hits with the “Shrek” and “Madagascar” films, and “Kung Fu Panda”. “Monsters vs. Aliens” isn’t one of their best, but it’s still pretty good.
I’m sure you know the story by now: a woman named Susan Murphy gets hit by a meteor on her wedding day and she grows to nearly 50-feet tall. She’s captured by the army and taken to a place where the army has been holding others monsters, so they can’t hurt or scare regular citizens.
But, when aliens come to Earth and threaten to destroy it the government frees Susan and the other monsters so they can defeat the aliens and save the day.
The animation in “MVA” is great and the 3-D was fantastic on the big screeen, still pretty good on DVD. The best character is B.O.B. (who’s voiced by Seth Rogan). He gets the most laughs.
The story is just O.K. There are some funny lines and inside jokes, but the movie is not as funny as “Kung Fu Panda”. In fact, at times it gets a little serious and I was surprised by that.
The voice cast is excellent. Along with Rogan, Reese Witherspoon, Will Arnet, Hugh Laurie and Keifer Sutherland all lend their talents. They’re all very good.
“Monsters vs. Aliens” is rated PG. There may be a few scenes that could be scary for very young kids, but they are very brief.
On The Official Kid Critic Report Card, “Monsters vs. Aliens” gets a B.
I had high hopes for “MVA” when it came our in the Spring, considering the trailers and all the hype, but it’s a little disappointing. Certainly worth seeing, but not among DreamWorks all-time best. There is a B.O.B. short included with some DVD packages.