There ar many concepts that function wonderfully in theory: communism, nuclear muscularity,
monkeys in outer space. Sadly, only like their theoretical counterparts, very few
successful practical examples be. With a title like Space Chimps, one assumes a cordial
farce in which accident prone apes -- opposable thumbs and all -- cause pandemonium within
a high tech setting. Instead, Quest for Camelot scratch awl Kirk De Micco (here co-writing and
directing) decides to go the bountiful screen blockbuster route. We want simian hijinks.
Instead, we're offered staid chance with messages about courageousness, self-esteem,
and living up to your potential. Boo!
When an expensive space probe goes wanting, a surly Senator (voice of Stanley Tucci)
with a key to NASA's funding wants it constitute. It�s decided that, instead of a manned
charge, a triad of chimps will be sent to fetch it. They admit the macho Titan
(Patrick Warburton), the level headed Luna (Cheryl Hines), and in a perfect PR move,
the great grandson of the first ape-stronaut ever, Ham III (Andy Samberg). One wormhole
afterward, our hairy heroes bump themselves on a distant alien planet ruled by the
evil dictator Zartog (Jeff Daniels). He is using the lost Earth satellite to control
his unhappy minions. It's up to the primates to find a way of defeating the villain
and getting back home in front it's excessively late.
Space Chimps is a whiplash reminder of how CGI invigoration continues to cannibalize itself.
Instead of finding modern ways to employ the medium -- as in the Shaw brothers-inspired Kung Fu Panda, or the
future shock sweetness of WALL-E -- this derivative big cover babysitter aims low
and still manages to underachieve. In fact, this loose cartoon cavalcade avoids nearly
of the format's flaws (stunt articulation casting, rampant pop culture riffing) and yet
finds a way to be unoriginal. Maybe it's the story, which has all the invention and imagination
of Saturday morning TV. And of course, it commits the unconscionable crime of cachexia
the hangdog pleasure possibilities of intergalactic monkeyshines.
Initially, Space Chimps looks like it might clam the trend. We ar introduced to Ham III
at a surreal circus where distorted humans contribute a Dali-esque touch of otherwise wanting
uniqueness. It's a conceit carried over to the NASA material where the gruff and
grumbling Senator has a face that resembles the aftermath of a steam roller accident.
From the trio of tech specialists as mainstream notions of geekdom (fat person, Goth gallon,
Indian) to the members of the press wHO appear as almost photorealistic, the multitude
presence in this film illustrates its only horse sense of vision.
The rest is rote. The alien major planet is like a Hello Kitty nightmare, Willy Wonka architecture
housing creatures resembling iridescent blobs of modelling clay or -- get this --
perfectly formed breasts. That's right, slap dab in the middle of a kid's photographic film i
s a lineament named Kilowatt (voiced by Broadway vet Kristin Chenoweth) who sings
opera and glows incandescently when she's scared. But Kilowatt is also a boob, no
bones around it. She's a pert, well rounded, flesh-colored pile with what looks like
a mamilla protruding from the top of her head. While this crataegus oxycantha be recitation too much into
what's supposed to be a heroic short imp, prepubertal boys testament surely catch an anthropomorphized
thrill.
It's simply too bad that everything else about Space Chimps is so uninspired. It consistently
goes for the cheap laughs, mining way too many jokes extinct of puns, pratfalls, and
the episodic reference to poop (these are apes, after all). The jeopardize is aimless
and the feel-good message mired in homogenized nonsense. Extraterrestrial monkeys would appear
to be an entertainment no-brainer. This movie took that sir Hiram Stevens Maxim literally.
The following Star Trek looks killer.
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