robyn millarReview Of Monster House
October 21st 2006 08:24
No Fury Like a Haunted House Scorned
It seems these days that every movie that reaps even the slightest return is destined to be copied, sequeled and exploited in every way possible. The success of animated movies aimed at the child-accompanied-by-adult-scene, such as Shrek and Monsters Inc. has spawned a plethora of imitators, ranging from the very good, (Finding Nemo), to the extremely blasé, (A Shark’s Tale). All of these films however, seek to reap the benefits of an adult sense of humour coupled with an entertaining storyline for the kids. Monster House continues happily in this vein.
The plot follows three young teens on Halloween (protagonist DJ, sidekick Chowder and preppy Jenny) in their mission to destroy the apparently cannibalistic house of their child-hating Mr NebberCracker (Steve Buscemi at his off-beat best) before it devours the neighbourhood.
With brilliant animation and some hysterical one-liners Monster House easily fulfils its brief, while never extending itself beyond what has already been established for the genre, this is not a film to break boundaries, but as an hour and a half’s entertainment it more then satisfies, although some of the scenes might be too scary for littlies, (I have to confess to a couple of heart-stopping moments myself). The voice acting is particularly notable, with Napoleon Dynamite’s Jon Heder easily stealing the show as geeky icon Reginald “Skull” Skulinski.
Kid’s movies are certainly not to everyone’s taste, and there is no doubt that this film is aimed firmly at the under thirteens, but, with its careful depiction of the confusion of early puberty and some incredibly accurate comments on the relationship between parents and their children, there's enough here for everybody.
7/10
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