Me and kiddie films don't exactly get along. I find most children to be off-putting and basically intolerable. Seeing an animated film on opening weekend is a special kind of Hell made just for me, apparently. In particular, Dreamworks films are on my sh*t list for being poor Pixar knockoffs. Whereas Pixar has excelled at creating stories that are both relevant to today and yet timeless, it seems like Dreamsworks is content with basically just riffing off the pop culture of the moment. However they find just the right mix with Monsters vs. Aliens, and come up with something that's both timeless and current.
The always enjoyable(and bankable) Reese Witherspoon voices Susan Murphy, a Californian who's seemingly perfect life is turned upside when she is hit by a glowing meteor on her wedding day. Atleast it wasn't a falling toilet(Dead Like Me reference for the uninitiated). The effect causes her to shoot up in height faster than Walt after he was abducted from the island(Lost reference for the uninitiated). Her life in shambles, and her hair now suddenly Storm-esque, she is captured by the US government after a fierce battle eerily reminiscent of King Kong and shipped to an undisclosed location. There she is indoctrinated into a covert team led by General W.R. Monger(Kiefer Sutherland), and featuring a ragtag group of movie monsters and other such creatures. There's The Missing Link, a fish-ape hybrid with self confidence issues; Dr. Cockroach(Hugh Laurie), a formerly human genius who bears more than a striking resemblance to Pinky from Pinky & the Brain; B.O.B.(Seth Rogen), a gelatinous mass that gained sentience but no brain, he's basically the Blob only much funnier; and Insectosaurus, a gigantic grub with proportionate strength and a unique bond with The Missing Link.
It's revealed that the source of Susan's immense powers is quantonium, the most powerful element in the universe. When this is detected, an alien named Gallaxhar sends a robotic probe to destroy the earth. Tasked by vaguely Elvis-like President Hathaway(Stephen Colbert), the monsters are sent into battle against the robot. This draws Gallaxhar to earth himself to capture Susan, extract the quantonium by any means necessary, then destroy and reshape the planet in his own image.
It's Susan's story, about her attempts to rebuild a new life labeled as a "monster" that is the heart of the film. Screenwriter Maya Forbes made the right decision in making it about Susan, not just because she's the most human of all the monsters, but because she has the only real arc in the entire film. The rest of the monsters serve as little more than comic relief, with the best gags going to B.O.B. and his witless attempts to mate as well as his seeming imperviousness to pain. Seth Rogen was the perfect choice for the part, and oddly enough B.O.B. actually looks a little like the Knocked Up star, I'm sure he'll be happy to know. I also enjoyed Stephen Colbert as the Prez, who brazenly whips out a pistol on national TV to join in on the fighting against the aliens just so he can proclaim "I'm a brave president!". Colbert can't not be funny.
Not everything works, though. There's precious little plot to be had here. It's basically aliens invade, monsters fight back. That might be enough for the kiddies, but I could've used a bit more meat. I don't want it to go too in depth but a little more than aliens attack, monsters defend would suffice. Most of the stuff with Susan's family didn't really land with me but it wasn't enough to hurt the film. All in all this was a lot of fun. It's monsters. It's aliens. What's not to like? They leave the door wide open for a sequel, and based off this one I gotta say I'm all for it. Only this time they need to mix it up: Monsters vs. Aliens vs. Predators! Or Monsters vs. Aliens vs. Ninja Robots! Ninja robots! Cool.
7/10
