Over the Hedge

Rating: 6/10 (8 January 2009)

An all-star cast of voices, and computer animation from the makers of Shrek, sounds like fun, and it is. Basically raccoon and con-artist RJ (Bruce Willis) has a speciality for finding and stealing food, and he has got himself into trouble with brown bear Vincent (Nick Nolte). He wants all his food (every specific item) that was taken from him, and the only way RJ can see to get it is to find animals to help him, and he manages to find a family of curious Amish-like forest animals. They are box turtle Verne (Garry Shandling), American red squirrel Hammy (Steve Carell), striped skunk Stella (Monster-in-Law's Wanda Sykes), Virginia opossum Ozzie (Star Trek's William Shatner) and his daughter Heather (singer Avril Lavigne), and father and mother North American Porcupines Lou (American Pie's Eugene Levy) and Penny (Home Alone's Catherine O'Hara). They have found a boundary, the hedge, and on the other side is the human world, and RJ is conning them to steal food for themselves, obviously the specific foods on a list. While they are doing this they are getting human development homeowner association president Gladys (Allison Janney) mad, and she calls Dwayne , aka "The Verminator" (Thomas Haden Church) to try and get rid of the animals. There is a quite predictable point when RJ loses all the food collected, Verne says something he shouldn't, and there is a momentary separation. But even after getting the food again, with help I should mention from disguised Stella "flirting" with Tiger the Persian cat (Omid Djalili), and after getting captured, RJ saves the day by trapping Vincent, and getting the humans what they deserve too. Pretty fast paced, witty dialogue and maybe a little satire about consumerism, it is a good old fashioned family cartoon. Good!