By snoadmin
DreamWorks’ latest animated film, “MegaMind” puts a refreshing twist on the traditional superhero movie.
There is Metro Man (Brad Pitt), the hero of Metro City and lifetime nemesis of the main character, MegaMind (Will Ferrel), who is the evil genius villain. There is also MegaMind’s fishy sidekick, Minion (David Cross); the high-spirited TV reporter, Roxanne Ritchi (Tina Fey), that knows no fear; and her cameraman, Hal Stewart (Jonah Hill), who is hopelessly in love with her.
The film opens with a scene of baby versions of MegaMind and Metro Man being blasted from spaceships from two separate planets, on the course for Earth, since their home worlds are about to be destroyed by a black hole.
This scene makes one think it’s just another superhero movie, since this opening is just like that found in the original “Superman” story. In a way, it’s like a homage to one of the biggest icons in superhero history, and one that many fans can appreciate. It’s also the start of the rivalry between MegaMind and Metro Man, who literally have been rivals since infanthood.
As both land on Earth, Metro Man gets lucky and lands in the lap of fortune and wealth, whereas MegaMind lands in a prison and gets raised by convicts. They grow up and end up going to school together, but MegaMind finds himself as the outcast, and Metro Man is friends with everyone and is the stereotypical goody two shoes.
The character development in “MegaMind” is phenomenal. Once MegaMind grows up, the audience can start to feel sorry for him, since being an outcast is probably an experience that a lot of people have faced at some point in their lives. That is, unless they are lucky and born or grew into wealth and prosperity like Metro Man. However, Metro Man was more of a static character throughout, which leaves MegaMind to grow and develop throughout the movie. It’s the multiple layers and development of the protagonist that make the audience feel attached to MegaMind.
The voice casting of “MegaMind” is done very well, making it hard to imagine anyone else playing these roles. With MegaMind’s tendency to mispronounce things by placing emphasis on the wrong syllable, Ferrel’s signature antics helped to add more punch to his role.
Hans Zimmer conducted the instrumental score for the film’s soundtrack, which is already a great piece of work in and of itself. Like his previous scores in “The Dark Knight” and “Inception,” the music went along very well with what was happening on-screen. Along with Zimmer’s musical talent, there were several classic rock songs that were played to go along with MegaMind, including “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses and “Highway to Hell” by AC/DC.
Animation in “MegaMind” is smooth and seamless with the exact kind of movement one would expect from a superhero movie. Colors are bright, vivid and lifelike. I caught the flick in 2D, which seems to be good enough, unless you find the 3D option a must for every movie.
Even though this is DreamWorks and mostly geared for a younger audience, the movie is enjoyable for adults as well. It has the underlying message that good and evil cannot exist without each other — the yin and yang must both be there to bring a sense of balance to the world.
MegaMind also offers a good nugget of wisdom that the audience can take home with them: “Destiny is not the path given to us, but the path we choose for ourselves.”
Since it is a funny and entertaining spoof of superhero movies, it’s worth watching for young and old alike.
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