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"MEGAMIND"
(2010) (voices of Will Ferrell, Tina Fey) (PG)

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QUICK TAKE:
Animated Comedy/Action: After apparently defeating his superhero nemesis, a super villain finds himself bored and thus invents a new hero to battle, all while unexpectedly falling for a TV reporter who detests him.
PLOT:
Having simultaneously arrived on Earth but raised in distinctly different environs, Megamind (voice of WILL FERRELL) and Metro Man (voice of BRAD PITT) have long been rivals, stemming from their time in school when Megamind decided to embrace evil since he couldn't compete with the better-looking and more popular goody two-shoes. Since then, the two men have battled for control of Metro City with Metro Man's physical prowess always besting Megamind's intellectual schemes.

His usual plan is to kidnap TV reporter Roxanne Ritchi (voice of TINA FEY) -- who works with cameraman Hal (voice of JONAH HILL) who has a crush on her -- with the help of his fish-headed lieutenant, Minion (voice of DAVID CROSS), and an array of robots known as Brain bots. Roxanne is used to the drill and isn't remotely scared of Megamind, thus frustrating his evil desires. But she soon has reason to worry as it appears that Megamind not only has finally bested his longtime rival, but also seemingly killed him.

Yet, while Minion enjoys the spoils of victory, Megamind soon finds himself bored and without purpose. Accordingly, he decides to alter Hal's DNA and turn him into a superhero in order to have a new rival to battle. However, Megamind doesn't anticipate falling for Roxanne -- while in the guise of a mild-mannered man -- or Hal's refusal to be a superhero and decision instead to become the villain known as Titan.

OUR TAKE: 6 out of 10
As a young boy growing up in the 1960s and '70s when there weren't a great deal of third-party entertainment options, I naturally gravitated toward comic books. Unlike many a kid, however, I sometimes went against the popular flow and enjoyed the second tier superheroes -- those in the Avenger series, the Fantastic four, the Defenders and others -- more than I did the more popular and widely read first team consisting of Superman, Batman and the like. Much like preferring one sports division (NFC vs. AFC) I was more a Marvel fan than a DC Comics one.

In terms of live action cinematic adaptations, however, I prefer the latter over the former. And now that we have two computer-animated movies featuring superheroes, I think I have to side with the "A" team -- that being Pixar -- over the "B" one that arrives this week from Dreamworks.

And that would be the heavily promoted "Megamind," an entertaining and visually handsome diversion that would probably seem so much better had "The Incredibles" never beat it to the big screen by six years - and with a better script.

As concocted by Alan J. Schoolcraft & Brent Simons and directed by Tom McGrath (who helmed "Madagascar" and its sequel), the film is something of a riff on the 1978 "Superman" movie. But rather than one extraordinary being from another planet landing on Earth as occurred with the Kryptonian boy soon to be known as Clark Kent (and his alter-ego), here we have two. One naturally is the chiseled and popular do-gooder (Metro Man, voiced by Brad Pitt), while the other has an enormous blue head as if Lex Luthor, General Zod and a member from Blue Man group got together and had a child (Megamind, voiced by Will Ferrell).

The two battle it out (brawn vs. brains) for supremacy of Metro City, all while a local TV reporter (voiced by Tina Fey) and her cameraman (voiced by Jonah Hill) watch and sometimes are drawn into the action. When Metro Man is defeated, however, Megamind needs a new competitor and does what any brilliant evil mind would do -- he creates one. As is oft the case with the best laid plans, this one goes awry and things must be contained and returned to normal before it's too late.

Along the way, various pop culture references are thrown into the mix (ranging from an amusing Brando doing Jor-El to Obama style posters featuring Megamind's mug and the slogan "No You Can't" -- rather than "Yes We Can"), as well as all sorts of over the top action, zany comedy and the usual other trappings of these sorts of big-budget animated projects.

It all goes down fairly easily, thanks to terrific vocal work (particularly from Ferrell), a lively pace, and fun (and sometimes funny) visuals. Yet, it doesn't help that the big plot development (over-the-top bad guy turning good) has already been done in another computer animated film this year, "Despicable Me."

Granted, that's just an unfortunate case of bad timing for this release. The bigger issue, however, is that while watching the individual elements as well as the picture as a whole, one can't help but get the impression that all of it ends up playing second banana to "The Incredibles" when it comes to this sub-genre as presented in this particular visual form.

It's enjoyable in terms of being an entertaining diversion, but it doesn't stack up when it comes to overall imagination, clever riffs on the superhero mold, depth or emotional engagement. Accordingly, "Megamind" will likely go down as a second tier offering to its top-level Pixar predecessor. Of course, with the bar set that high, second place isn't a bad place to end up. An amusing diversion that could have benefitted from a beefed-up script, the film rates as a 6 out of 10.




Reviewed October 23, 2010 / Posted November 5, 2010


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