From the beginning of computer-generated animation I have been a huge fan of the Dreamworks/Pixar films. Toy Story 1 & 2 were both amazing, and still possibly my favorite of all the animated movies. However, it is hard to choose when you have other gems out there like Finding Nemo, Shrek, Flushed Away, and most recently Wall-E. They have put out some mediocre movies in the past, but for the most part, the animated movies from these two companies are much better than your average film. From a young age I absolutely loved animated movies. This can be proven by looking at my VHS collection of every Disney movie that came out during my childhood. I could watch them over and over, and never grow tired of them. Each one of them had this magical ability to tap into my imagination, and really pull me into the film. This could have been a result of the subliminal messages hidden in the artwork; but more likely it was their unique ability to create that feeling of excitement and joy in children.Now as I have grown older they have moved away from hand-drawn animation in favor of computer-generated. I still think these films have that same affect on children. I imagine that if I had been a child over the past several years, I would have begged for a DVD of every animated movie that was released. Now that I am older I am not so taken with every film, but some of them do still inspire that same child-like feeling, just to a lesser extent. Movies like Finding Nemo & Flushed Away make me feel like a little kid again. But some of the others just don't draw me in nearly as much. I think Pixar & Dreamworks did such a good job with their first few movies that the bar was set too high. I think every movie they release should be as good as Toy Story or Finding Nemo, but they can't live up to that every time.
All that being said, Monsters Vs Aliens was one of those films that just didn't get me all that excited. It was a fine movie that I enjoyed watching, but I will probably never see it again. I felt the same way about Bee Movie, another Dreamworks film that came out a couple years ago. They were both kinda boring to watch, and I don't see how kids could be all that interested. If you go back to Shrek The 3rd, Dreamworks is on a streak of mediocre-at-best animated movies. I looked up what they have coming up... 3 more Shrek related movies, a 3rd Madagascar, & a Kung-fu Panda sequel. Its not looking good for them. I am still really looking forward to seeing Up, and I feel Pixar has done a better job at making great animated films. However, looking at what they have in production reveals Toy Story 3 and Cars 2. What is with all the sequels? I will probably be first in line to see the Toy Story movie... I really hope they don't ruin it.
I would give Monsters vs Aliens 2.5 out of 5 stars. See it or don't, it is up to you.
-deric
Filed Under: Animated, Comedy, Dreamworks, Rogen