‘Planet 51’ is an Exercise in Audience Nonchalance
-----‘Planet 51’ seemed to be an unassuming animated flick with a strong voice cast and decent animation. Or at least, it did before the trailer was shoved down our throats over and over in the months leading up in the film’s release. And then of course, the movie finally came out, and I went in as open minded as I could. And unfortunately, after a reasonably promising premise, ‘Planet 51’ proves to be an experience as forgettable as they come.
-----When Astronaut Charles T. Baker lands on a distant planet, he is surprised to find a whole species of inhabitants living in a mimic of 1950’s America. He’s even more surprised when they treat him like the dangerous alien. Now on the run, he befriends a young alien named Lem, and the two work together to return Baker back to his ship, before his chance to leave is lost forever.
-----Dwayne Johnson, the likable endorser of many recent kiddy flicks, voices the lead, Charles Baker. His voice is unrecognizable here, and the effect ultimately neutralizes his charisma, with his comedic timing also defused thanks to modest animation and a bland script. Justin long, also a star I typically enjoy, voices Baker’s friend Lem. Long is a bit more recognizable with his tone, though he too fails to do anything but dutifully read off the script. And as much as it pains me to, I’ll list the rest of the superb cast utterly wasted on this film, including the exceptionally talented Gary Oldman, who also voiced a character in this month’s much better animated film, ‘A Christmas Carol.’ Also participating are the normally funny Sean William Scott, John Cleese, and Jessica Biel, in bit roles no more entertaining than those of the leads.
-----About fifteen minutes into the film you’ve lost nearly all interest in the proceedings. And indeed, it’s a fifteen minutes that seems much longer, turning a ninety minute runtime into what feels like a never-ending three hour bout of waiting. There’s very little to care about with this premise that takes pride in its originality and then follows it up with every overused step in the book. Not to mention the filmmaker’s near obsession with pop culture references, sans the charm and execution present of such methods present in the first two ‘Shrek’ films. And as fate would have it, screenwriter Joe Stillman actually scripted the first two ‘Shrek’ films, with apparently some sort of writer’s block occurring since then. Also present in his script is a good deal of adult humor, not all of which will sail over the younger audience’s heads, instead flopping right into their faces. What’s worse, this added element of adult jokes doesn’t even make its target audience laugh, leaving you instead questioning why you’re still in the theater. And with such a nonchalant plot, and characters as basic and lifeless as they come, it’ll be hard even for the aforementioned children to enjoy this woeful outing.
-----The animation isn’t anything special here, so ‘Planet 51’ can’t even work on a visual basis. At its best it’s mildly pleasant to look at, providing only a few solid environments for the insipid character designs. The musical score is a mimic of such overused 50s tunes that it comes off as a cheap TV reproduction in the sound department, and the action sequences are as worn out and tired as pretty much every other aspect of the film. Unfortunately it all combines into ninety minutes of letting your mind wander, seldom remembering that you’re in a theater or even slightly caring about the events onscreen.
-----The occasional reference and bit of unassuming humor plays OK, but the film drifts from mediocre to bad in an altogether weak production. The blatant jokes and self-aware antics that made ‘Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs’ soar, act only as overdone nuisances in ‘Planet 51.’ As you leave the theater you’ll start to question what you just did for an hour and a half; what did I just do? Oh that’s right, we saw a movie…didn’t we? There’s just nothing special, unique, or even entertaining on a basic level, and the results don’t become apparent until about halfway through the film when you’re sure it must have been ninety minutes by now. You’ll find yourself desperately awaiting the end, and when you think you’ve reached it, the film drags on even longer, resulting in a movie that seems worse with every day following the viewing. And I’m usually the last person to complain about a lengthy runtime. Ultimately, with more references than a Wikipedia page, and nothing veering anywhere above mediocrity, ‘Planet 51’ proves to be one of the year’s most forgettable films, and its worst animated outing yet.
-----Tidbit: This film contains an odd number of similarities with this year’s ‘Aliens in the Attic’ if ones steps back to look. They both have generic green aliens, they both have a 1.5 Stars rating, they were both extremely forgettable, and both of them should be avoided by you.
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