There are two animation giants in Hollywood at the moment. Pixar and Dreamworks. They are always unfairly compared with one another. I consider Pixar to be my religion, and Dreamworks, my guilty pleasure. Dreamworks never tries to be like Pixar, and it shouldn't. I love it how it is.
From past offerings such as Kung Fu Panda and How To Train Your Dragon, Dreamworks has consistently given us colourful goody bags of fun - with a lot of heart. They are movies that are unpretentious and exist solely for pure entertainment, and I love them for it. Megamind is no exception, although I would have to say it did catch me off guard from time to time.
The film opens with a backstory of how Megamind developed his villainous ways, justifying his life mission to defeat his nemesis Metro Man. But this fight between good and evil abruptly ceases leaving Megamind to contemplate his place in the world. It's an introduction to existentialism for young children. Hooray for Dreamworks.
What I enjoyed most about the movie was that it presented itself as being formulaic, then out of nowhere it rewrites the formula - this happened two or three times from what I remember. I'm not ashamed to admit I was surprised many times in the duration of this wonderfully made film. The director perfectly balances the obligated sentimentality, alongside the gags and the thrilling action set pieces.
The only criticism I have for the film is that it feels like a spin-off. Some of the smaller characters feel like they've been recycled from another movie and it lacks the epic nature of something like Kung Fu Panda, so I would not be expecting a sequel to this one.
Despite that, Megamind is joyous, fun, and laugh-out-loud funny. The 3D was very well done too, and I recommend seeing it in that format. Usually 3D just works in animation, and it works extremely well here. If you live in the southern hemisphere, this is a great summer flick. It's the perfect movie to just sit back and enjoy the air-conditioned confines of a movie theatre with a box of popcorn on one hand and a choctop on the other. Oh, and take the kids too.
Image Credits: 1, 2, 3
