Great Film But Not Really For Kids

Rating: 8/10 (30 December 2010)

As the father of a 10 year-old girl, I have had to sit through some pretty dire kids' movies over the years. Prior to "Megamind", the most recent ones were "Despicable Me" and "Toy Story 3", the former good but sentimental and poorly paced, the latter a predictable by-the-numbers instalment in the franchise.
I wasn't expecting much from "Megamind" and knew nothing about it, not even having seen a trailer but I was very pleasantly surprised. There was excellent characterisation and voice acting, spot-on animation and a great soundtrack. However, the plot was the high point for me - genuinely clever and original, avoiding the normal Hollywood ending. In the hands of Pixar, for example, Metro Man would come back to save the day but in "Megamind", there is a much more interesting ending.
The design is also excellent, with influences from DC comics and a 50s sci-fi retro feel to Megamind's guns and battle suit. I see that Guillermo del Torro is credited with creative input and it shows.
The characters are some of the most convincing that I have seen in an animated film. Will Ferrell plays Megamind with a talent that belies his previous dire offerings in American "comedies", Tina Fey is a great Roxanne and Brad Pitt hams it up enjoyably as Metro Man.
The only observation that I would make is that many of the jokes are going to be over the heads of kids. I know that film-makers like to insert in-jokes and references that only adults will understand in order to keep their interest but there are too many in this film, including Megamind's incarnation as Marlon Brando's portrayal of Superman's father and Megamind's existential introspection.
However, it is undoubtedly the best children's film that I have seen over the past few years so if you don't have a child, try and borrow one and go and see this.