“Monsters vs. Aliens 3D” is a sweet tale with some interesting 3D effects, but it’s nothing more than that. It’s as if directors Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon decided that audiences would be so engaged in watching pieces of comets fly at them that they (the directors) really didn’t have to worry about plot and character development. And lack of plot and character development is the main problem with this movie. Sure, kids will like it. And some of the lines are very funny. But that’s not enough. Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) is getting ready for her wedding day when a meteor crashes in her vicinity. A substance in the meteor causes her to glow green and then grow until she’s big enough to be called Ginormica. The government arrives and incarcerates her in a prison for monsters, where she meets her future companions. There’s Dr. Cockroach (Hugh Laurie), who, in an experiment similar to the one in “The Fly,” became his experiment; The Missing Link (Will Arnett), who resembles the Creature from the Black Lagoon; B.O.B. (Seth Rogan), a gelatinous mound based on the Blob and the silent Insectosaurus, who seems patterned after Godzilla or Mothra. When Gallaxhar (Rainn Wilson) invades Earth, the President (Stephen Colbert) decides to let the monsters do the fighting.
The plot contradicts itself in telling Susan’s story. She’s a monster by happenstance, not by nature, and she wants to become normal again. At the same time, an underlying theme of the movie says that being monstrous (or different) can be a good thing. And the tension between what Susan wants and the necessity that she be a part of the monster team is not fully developed. In fact, all of the characters are pretty superficial and there’s no meaningful interaction between the good monsters and the bad guy alien that helps to define the characters and enhance the narrative. Even the 3D, disappointing after the opening sequences, doesn’t immerse the audience in a tactile experience like “Coraline.” “Wall-E” still stands as the movie to aspire to, and “Monsters vs. Aliens” doesn’t even come close. 3/28/09
1 comment:
I believe that the writer of this blog has mistaken this "cartoon" for a "film". By asking for plot and character development she is looking for qualities that appear in dramas and good comedies of which this is niether. This "kiddie flick" is just what it is portrayed to be. A colorful 3D movie made matinee style with all the gimmicks to go with it.
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