Mini Reviews (June 2011)

Monsters vs Aliens, Conan O'Brien Can't Stop

Monsters vs Aliens (June 6/11)

A typically slick effort from DreamWorks Animation, Monsters vs Aliens follows Reese Witherspoon's Susan Murphy as she's hit by a meteorite and transformed into a giant - with the film subsequently detailing the character's efforts at working alongside a ragtag group of monsters to defeat a malevolent alien (Rainn Wilson's Gallaxhar) bent on destroying the world. Directors Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon have infused Monsters vs Aliens with a consistently irreverent feel that's reflected most keenly in its cartoonish characters and larger-than-life plot developments, and while the lighthearted atmosphere proves effective at initially capturing the viewer's interest, there does reach a point at which the relentless emphasis on comedy of a decidedly juvenile nature becomes increasingly difficult to stomach - with the pervasive lack of laughs only highlighting the needlessness of many of the film's jokier elements (eg the President busts out a rendition of "Axel F" during his first face-to-face encounter with Gallaxhar's enormous robot). It's just as clear, however, that the film does improve demonstrably as it goes along, with the palpable chemistry between Susan and her four sidekicks (Seth Rogen's B.O.B., Hugh Laurie's Dr. Cockroach, Will Arnett's Missing Link, and Vernon's Insectosaurus) ensuring that the action-oriented midsection actually fares a lot better than one might've anticipated. The decidedly lackluster nature of the movie's central villain - Gallaxhar is simply too goofy to take seriously - ultimately results in a less-than-engrossing climax, which cements Monsters vs Aliens' place as a watchable yet somewhat underwhelming release from DreamWorks Animation.