Monday, March 30, 2009

Bloggers Vs. Aliens: MONSTERS VS. ALIENS, The Simpsons, Smallville, and MORE!

Argh, Mondays. Do they ever not suck? I always see Facebook status updates about having a case of the Mondays and whatnot, but I think I just live in a perpetual state of crappy Mondays. There's just no way around it - the universe creates equilibrium, and in order to enjoy the glory that is a lazy sunday morning, one must, in turn, suffer through the inglorious pain of waking up on a Monday feeling like you just got hit by a mack truck.


- So ... I just wrote up this huge blog post about the best episodes of THE SIMPSONS in the last 5 years, only to witness a stinker of an episode last night. Last night's ep seemed to throw a ton of stuff against the wall, and yet it didn't give anything time to stick. In the span of 22 minutes, we got Homer and Marge finding out that their wedding was invalid thus, forcing them to re-marry, Marge turning into a "bridezilla," Homer getting kidnapped on his wedding day in a riff on Saw, Sideshow Bob showing up (!) but not being the culprit, and then the reveal of Patty and Selma as the guilty parties. Umm ... what? This ep was *completely* all over the place, and even though it managed to get in a couple of decent jokes, overall it just felt like a mess. I mean, a random, two-minute Sideshow Bob appearance? Isn't it supposed to be a special occasion when he shows up? The saddest part is, I actually feel that there's a lot of untapped potential in the Homer-Patty+Selma relationship, it might have been a cool idea to have an ep where Homer tries to prove himself to Marge's embittered sisters. And yet, here the whole relationship was just one more random aside in a convoluted and overcrowded episode. Not good.


My Grade: C-



- As for FAMILY GUY, even though I had some issues with the episode as a whole, I have to admit: this was probably the funniest episode in a while. Now, that's not necessarily saying a whole lot, given the mediocrity of most of this season, but ... I did absolutely crack up when guest star Patrick Stewart held up two bowling balls to his chest and said "look at me, I've got girl boobs!". Now that's funny. Also, even though Peter Griffin took time to "warn" us that this would be a Meg-centric episode, guess what? I was actually happy that Meg got to do more in this ep than just be the butt of mean-spirited jokes. I mean, don't the writers remember that many of the early and best episodes of FG focused on Meg (and on Chris, for that matter?). The show has really lost something by turning one of its main characters into a complete one-note in-joke, and I think it was a welcome change to involve Meg in the main story, even if we needed a lame "warning." Maybe if FG could concentrate on actually telling funny stories as opposed to recycling the same 5 jokes over and over, we could get some decent episodes. This ep did manage to balance out the usual staleness with some funny guest-voices and a nice change-of-pace Meg plot. The cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation had some pretty funny moments, and Adam West was brilliant as always. So - better than usual? Sure. Amazing? Not quite.


My Grade: B


- Got to talk about SMALLVILLE for a minute. As mentioned previously, I was uber-curious to see Thursday's ep, as it featured a special guest appearance from longtime DC Comics staple Zatanna. Easily one of the coolest female heroes in the DC cannon, there was practically infinite potential in pairing the character with Clark Kent and really running wild with a supernatural-themed episode that could have pitted Clark against the mysterious magics that are Zatanna's stock in trade. Of course, this being Smallville, the small-screen version of Z looked the part, but was reduced to a gimmicky, one-note character who for some reason possessed the lame ability to grant someone one wish, based on their secret heart's desire. And, this being Smallville, this meant a hi-larious bout of body-swapping for Chloe, who wakes up in Lois' body. Wow, never seen *that* scenario on Smallville before (note dripping sarcasm ...). In fact, so much of the episode was focused on Chloes' out-of-body experience that we barely even got any interaction between Clark and Z. There were a few decent scenes between her and Oliver, and some nice allusions to Z's dearly departed dad, John Zatara (who made his first appearance alongside Superman in Action Comics #1, to boot!) ... but, it did feel like a lot of potential for a cool adventure was ultimately blown. How great would it have been to have Z take Clark on a mystical odyssey and for the two of them to face off against a classic magic-powered villain like Felix Faust? As it stands, this ep can't hold a candle to the classic Batman: The Animated Series installment featuring Zatanna - which was a truly memorable use of one of comics' all-time great heroes. As for this one, another merely okay episode filled with Smallville's usual dose of cheesiness. At least they did, as I said, nail the look of Zatanna - tophat, fishnets, and all -perhaps the character can return at some point for a more inspired adventure.


My Grade: B-



Alright, time for a movie review:



MONSTERS VS. ALIENS Review:


- Here's a movie that I felt kind of compelled to see, despite having read a number of less-than-stellar reviews. I mean - Monsters Vs. Aliens? That's a kickass combo that has the potential to be up there with peanut butter and chocolate, strawberry and cheesecake, or pirates and ninjas. Monsters vs. Aliens should and could have been an insane, action-packed homage to the sci-fi movies of yesteryear. As it stands, the movie is a lot of fun, but not quite as crazy as I would have liked. In fact, it's suprising just how conventional the movie turns out to be, given the inherent implications of its bombastic title. I mean, on one hand, it is kind of impressive how a movie with this title ends up mostly being about a woman coming into her own and becoming strong and self-reliant. And yet ... this is a movie called MONSTERS VS. ALIENS ... who goes to a movie like that wanting to see a story filled with nice little life lessons and empowerment messages?


There is a lot to like about the movie, though. Visually, the film sports some really impressive animation. The characters all look great, and the gelatinous blob, Bob, is really a sight to behold - the detail and fluidity with which he is animated is really pretty amazing. Also, like Kung-Fu Panda before it, Monsters Vs. Aliens features some genuinely exciting action set-pieces, culminating in a climactic fight aboard the alien mothership. There is a definite videogame-like aesthetic at play here, and the bright colors and retro-future designs reminded me of the likes of Ratchet & Clank and other candy-coated platform games. I did see the movie in 3D as well, and overall the effect was pretty cool. The images and action really pop with the aid of the glasses, although I do still feel like the 3D creates a noticeably duller and hazier image than what you'd get otherwise. I wish we could get the depth of 3D coupled with the sharper and more colorful image of traditional digital projection, but that may still be a few years away.


Visuals aside, the voice cast here is also really good. The number of big-name stars who lent their voices to the film is pretty staggering - Hugh Laurie, Kiefer Sutherland, Reese Witherspoon, Paul Rudd, Rainn Wilson all show up and do an excellent job in bringing the various characters to life. The standout though and likely favorite with the kids is Seth Rogen as Bob - a funny character who is definitely a scene-stealer. My personal favorite though was probably Stephen Colbert as the President - Colbert's delivery is awesome and in my view he gets most of the movie's funniest lines, including a great riff on Close Encounters.

But while a couple of Colbert and Rogen's lines are genuinely funny, too much of the humor in the movie is just, well, kind of lame. There are too many soon-to-be-dated pop culture references of the Shrek mold, and too many quasi-cutesy lines that more often than not fall flat. Aside from that, the biggest problem here may be that, believe it or not, Monsters Vs. Aliens at times feels boring. If  any movie ever deserved to be a nonstop thrill ride, this was it, but again, way too much of the movie is spent on a sappy and generic storyline involving Reese Witherspoon's character. When the movie does ramp up the action it's a lot of fun, and there are some cool shout-outs to the monster movies of old ... but it's hard to believe that so much of the running time is dedicated to the 50 ft Woman (er, make that 49 ft Woman) moping around and feeling sorry for herself. 

In the end, MONSTERS VS. ALIENS is a fun flick that's worth checking out if only for the imaginative and eye-popping visuals. There is some excellent voice work, some decent humor, and one or two cool action set pieces that will please kids and adults alike. But, this one is definitely a bit of a step down from Kung Fu Panda - whereas that movie embraced its premise wholeheartedly, this one never seems to go as far or to get as crazy as it should.

My Grade: B

Alright party people, catch ya' soon with 24 thoughts and more!


No comments: