A cool tribute and a great animated film

Rating: 8/10 (4 April 2016)

I am a fan of Superheroes, I am a fan of b-movies, and so I love films that blur the line between the two, part of the reason is also because I think that a lot of those old B-movies could be remade as superhero movies very easily, you want proof? Sam Raimi's Darkman was inspired by old universal horror films and mad scientist B-movie, Wes Craven's Swamp Thing also blurs the lines a bit and you also have this movie. Aliens have invaded the earth, sending in a giant robot probe, after attempts to destroy it fail the government resorts to an alternate method; Monsters. For years the US government has been capturing and containing monsters the most recent of which is Ginormica, a to-be bride who is hit by a meteor which contained radioactive material which causes her to grow giant, she joins the team which already consists of Dr Cockroach, B.O.B, the Missing Link and Insectosaurus. Everyone of the monsters is a stand-in for some iconic b-movie monster; 'Missing Link' – 'Creature From the Black Lagoon', 'B.O.B.' –'The Blob', 'Dr Cockroach' – 'The Fly', 'Ginormica' – 'The Fifty Foot Woman', and 'Insectosaurus' – 'Godzilla/Mothra'. As a tribute to those old B-movies this film succeeds, the plot is over-the-top, the story is outrageous and the action is top. But this films succeeds on another levels, this movie is outrageously funny; the verbal humour, the slapstick are both done expertly and the voice actors are having a blast, top points to Hugh Laurie (yes, THE Hugh Laurie) as Dr Cockroach. And yet past the humour and the b-movie tribute this film also has its fair share of tender moments and it's kind of heartfelt overall. This movie is great: kids and adults will love it, proof of my theory that when Dreamworks are good they are fantastic. So where's that superhero remake of The Manster? What about The Amazing Colossal Man? Or The Indestructible Man? Octaman? Blood Freak? The Amazing Transparent Man? Come on studios! Most of these movies are in public domain for crying out loud! And there's no shortage of B-movie loving directors and writers, Make this stuff happen!