Something fishy is going on...

Rating: 5/10 (12 February 2005)

SHARK TALE is an animated feature about fish and sharks and other creatures that live under the sea. So, why does Don Feinberg, the shark character voiced by Peter Falk, sing "The Wind Beneath My Wings." I mean in a film all about fish, shouldn't he be singing "The Wave Beneath My Fins?" There is no wind and they have no wings and logically these characters would not even know what "wind" and "wings" are. And when everybody is celebrating life at the Whale Wash, why do they all sing "At the Car Wash" and not "At the Whale Wash?" It would seem that they don't have cars and shouldn't even know what one is either. Could it be that funny parodies of the songs would be less marketable on the soundtrack CD?
There is no real logic in this fish world. One creature is seen pouring tea into a cup, but none goes in because it disappears into the ocean water. Which is only logical, so why was he pouring tea in the first place? But other fish are into graffiti art and their canned spray paint isn't effected by the water. Oscar, the protagonist voiced by Will Smith, longs to live in a penthouse so the he can enjoy the view, but he is a fish in gravity-defying water so he can swim up and enjoy any view he wants, any time he wants. Plus, why would the said penthouse require an elevator?
These are, admittedly, silly, insignificant details individually, but put together they are examples of just what is wrong with the film. It goes to extremes to make the fishy world on view a parallel universe to ours, like say, SHREK; while at the same time suggesting it is an unseen part of our world, like say, FINDING NEMO. The action mostly takes place in what appears to be a submerged human world, most notably New York City in general and Times Square in particular. But if it is a sunken part of the human world, why is it implied that this a uniquely fishy world? The film can't make up its mind: The Coca-Cola sign in Times Square reads Coral-Cola, yet Will Smith's Oscar brags about owning a PlayStation. (Did PlayStation pay for a plug and Coca-Cola didn't?) And apparently this civilization has electricity, but how it functions under water isn't clear. It is annoying that the film can't decide just what universe it exists in. Is this a fish built society (then why are there knobs on the door?) or is it a man-made world that has fallen to a watery grave like the Titanic (then what caused New York City to sink?)
Likewise, the film suffers from a muddled story line. Basically, we are given a Damon Runyonesque tale of small-time hustlers and gangsters on the streets of New York (which raises the question of whether swimming fish would even need streets). But into this Guys and Dolls milieu we are also given hip-hop characters and hoods right out of GOODFELLAS. It is an everything-plus-the-kitchen-sink approach, which should make it funny in an AIRPLANE! sort of way, but instead the inconsistencies are just annoying. It is like nobody thought this through; this isn't inspired chaos, just confusion.
The art and animation is just fine, exactly what we have come to expect from DreamWorks, but it is betrayed by a trite and sloppy screenplay. A simple test would be to ask "Would this story work without the animation, with real actors?" I don't think it would. Even with -- especially with this cast. Other than Falk, whose part is a slight cameo, the only strong vocal performance is given by Martin Scorsese, and overrated director and an underrated actor. His hyperactive, twitchy vocal patterns were made for cartoon voicers. The rest of the cast -- Will Smith, Robert DeNiro, Jack Black, Angelina Jolie and Renee Zellweger -- all seem to be examples of stunt casting; none give their characters a distinctive voice to match a distinctive character, like Ellen DeGeneres in FINDING NEMO or Eddie Murphy in SHREK or Holly Hunter in THE INCREDIBLES or Robin Williams in ALADDIN.
The stakes have risen; remarkable films like TOY STORY 1 & 2, MONSTER'S INC. and SHREK 2 with their mix of artistry and intelligence, make it harder to accept that excellent animation can compensate for poorly crafted storytelling. SHARK TALES is well intentioned, with a moral about honesty and acceptance -- one shark confesses to being a closet vegetarian, with being gay the suggested subtext -- but the happily ever after, Capraesque finale seems fake. SHARK TALE is a well made film, but it is a small fish in an increasingly larger ocean.