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MONSTERS VS ALIENS

Voices of: Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Will Arnett, Seth Rogen, Rainn Wilson, Paul Rudd, Kiefer Southerland and Stephen Colbert

Directed by: Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon

Rated PG for sci-fi action, some crude humor and mild language

By John Delia

Between seeing the trailer and going to the screening of Monster’s VS Aliens I had a lot of doubt about the animated film, including a storyline that looked a lot like The Day the Earth Stood Still, animation that seemed lifeless and a little skeptical about the highly touted InTru 3D, but you know what, I was proved wrong. The film is a monster hit from its very funny beginning to the explosive big finish.

Susan Murphy (Witherspoon) is unwittingly clobbered by a meteor full of outer space gunk on her wedding day and mysteriously grows to nearly 50 feet tall. The military lead by General W.R. Monger (Southerland) jumps into action and Susan gets captured and put into a secret government compound. There, she is renamed Ginormica and held along with a ragtag group of Monsters: the brilliant but insect-headed Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D. (Laurie); the macho half-ape, half-fish, The Missing Link (Arnett); the gelatinous and indestructible B.O.B. (Rogen); and the 350-foot grub called Insectosaurus. Their confinement is cut short, however, when a mysterious alien robot lands on Earth and begins storming the country. In a moment of desperation, The President (Colbert) is persuaded to enlist the motley crew of Monsters to combat the alien robot and save the world from imminent destruction.

The fun in this film comes from the actors who voice the characters. Witherspoon makes a very funny Susan as she aimlessly finds herself among some very weird characters that are ordinarily very disgusting to her. The hilarious dialogue combined with great animation reminded me of the comedy that won the hearts of Shrek lovers. I love B.O.B. played by Rainn Wilson, a blob of gelatin that thinks he’s indestructible. Whenever he thinks he has proved his strength something seems to prove him wrong. In a very funny scene he makes the move on a Jello desert.

The film is filled with comical blunders, prate falls and cleaver dialogue that keeps rolling with the creators parodying the 50’s monster films like The Attack of the Fifty Foot Woman, The Blob, The Monster From The Black Lagoon and others. Much like Shrek that lampooned much of the fairy tales brought to life by Disney, this seems to be the start of a new franchise for Dreamworks.

The 3D effects are awesome when combined with IMAX. The depth of field and the wild stuff coming at you are great, but more importantly; the clarity of the projected image is astounding.
The movie is Rated PG for sci-fi action, some crude humor and mild language.

FINAL ANALYSIS: See Monsters VS Aliens, it’s a monster of a movie. (5 of 5 Palm Trees)

SUNSHINE CLEANING

Starring: Amy Adams, Emily Blunt, Alan Arkin, Steve Zahn Clifton Collins, Jr., Mary Lynn Rajskub and Jason Spevak

Directed by: Christine Jeffs

Rated R for language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use

By John Delia

Although I expected a comedy after seeing the trailer, Sunshine Cleaning surprised me with a wonderful little drama that is memorable and captivating. The acting by Adams and Blunt takes top prize for best chemistry as the two bounce off each other in ways that make you laugh and cry at the same time. If you like films like Juno and Little Miss Sunshine, then this dramatic comedy is for you.

Rose Lorkowski (Adams) was once a high school cheerleading standout and was headed for a dream life, then came reality. A down and out cleaning lady for a local service, Rose has succumbed to a mundane life with her father Joe (Arkin) and sister Norah (Blunt) as her only family support. Add to this that her get-rich-quick scheming father and her sister can’t keep a job, while her son keeps getting kicked out of school for inappropriate behavior. One day after making love to her married ex-boyfriend (Zahn) he comes up with a suggestion that she can clean up crime scenes for a living. After getting Norah to join with her on the idea the two start making great strides and the family sees new hope. When the business takes a turn for the worse however, Rose and Norah have to face some very tough decisions.

The acting is the key here to the film’s success. Adams and Blunt really make a plausible duo in this slice of life drama that is unfortunate yet uplifting. The two even look a lot alike so they really fit the family profile. Their character’s personalities, however are totally opposite, while Rose is level headed, Norah is lamebrain and awkward. I really loved the two as they try to run a business that gets too much for them and finally gets out of hand.

In support, both Zahn and Arkin are superb. Zahn plays a local cop who has to visit the bloody crime scenes that need a lot of clean-up where he comes up with the idea for Rose’s business. Arkin provides the comic relief with the wild sales schemes he comes up with to make money for the family. The shrimp caper stands out as one of the funniest scenes of the film.

The movie is rated R for language, disturbing images, some sexuality and drug use so take this into consideration when viewing the film.

FINAL ANALYSIS: A very good film for those that like slice of life films. (4.5 of 5 Palm Trees)