Fifteen minutes into Monsters vs. Aliens, the latest from DreamWorks, I remembered why I have no love for the animated flicks created by this studio. Neat visuals and nifty 3D, maybe, but when it gets right down the essentials of a great movie - the story - DreamWorks animated films just don't have it.In Monsters vs. Aliens, soon-to-be married Susan (Reese Witherspoon) gets hit by a meteorite on her wedding day, grows fifty feet and gets carted off to a secret military unit that covers up monster conspiraces. There, she meets three other monsters (voiced by Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett and Seth Rogen) and is recruited by her military handler (Keifer Sutherland) to save the world when
What Monsters vs. Aliens doesn't do is put story first. Sure, Susan and the monsters go through a short "growing" phase where they realize they're capable/special/perfect just the way they are. The movie might be get away with that thread of a character arc if it were charmingly funny. Sadly, that's not the case either. In an hour and forty I may have chuckled once or twice, but that's less in thanks to the dialogue itself and more thanks to the voice actors behind the animation. You see, it's more interesting when you remember it's Brit Hugh Laurie throwing out a surprised OMG, blob-like Seth Rogen hitting on a mound of Jell-O or Stephen Colbert acting like a wickedly self-centered American President (damn you, South Carolina; you spoiled our chance!). In the end, though, a top-notch celebrity cast can only carry the film so far. In the end, you'll leave having watched an empty, uninspired film.
On the other hand, let's consider the two-minute trailer for PIXAR's UP the played before Monsters vs. Aliens. Narry a high-profile celebrity voice in sight (Ed Asner voices our main character), and the UP trailer has more going for it in two minutes than Monster vs. Aliens did the entire film. Charming visuals of a man's house lifting thanks to thousands of colorful balloons; a quirky relationship between an old man and cute kid; a mimicking jungle bird and a special dog collar that promises clever dialogue and delivery had me smiling in anticipation.
Like many of Pixar's films, it won't have to be in 3D to be special, whereas Monsters vs. Aliens was most certainly flat without the special effects. Even though Pixar is jumping on the 3D wagon that seems so popular of animated films nowadays (UP will release in both 2D and 3D), it doesn't matter -- you'll get the great story either way. Pixar's also rereleasing Toy Story and Toy Story 2 in 3D for a limited release in October to buzz up the release of Toy Story 3 in 2010. Rather than roll my eyes at an attempt at obvious marketing and money-grubbing, more than ten years later after Toy Story's original release and I'm SQUEE-ing at the thought. Monsters vs. Aliens won't be on anyone's radar in ten years.
But will DreamWorks even feel the need to shake up its animated studio? With MvA's $58 million box office weekend, is their celebrity-high, story-low formula in need of "fixing"?
Sad to say, probably not. Which means I'll know to skip the next DreamWorks animation and save my money for the next Pixar. Look for UP to open the Cannes Film Festival in May--the first animated film ever to do so--then open in wide release a week later May 29.
And check out the trailer below.
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