Review of Escape from Planet Earth (2013) by Michael R — 12 Mar 2013

Escape from Planet Earth's primary quality is that it's 90 minutes long.

There are only three surprises in the film: the first is the vastly overqualified voice cast. The second is that while you'd expect there to be a lesson about brains being better than brawn, as Gary succeeds where his over-muscled brother failed, it doesn't -- it seems to be promoting the idea that thinking actually holds a hero back from acting. Last, it's odd that the movie focuses on an actual father rather than a kid; it's like the film is saying, "hey, kids, your dad may be a drag, but... he could theoretically be a hero if he ever gets the balls.".

As such, parents of children who can behave themselves will probably not regret taking their kids to see Escape from Planet Earth. Parents used to the sly, subtle humor and unexpectedly rich characterization of Pixar and Dreamworks' better films might have some regrets, as Escape aims to do nothing more than keep the little ones occupied for an hour and a half. Parents with children who can't keep quiet in theaters would probably do better to just put a DVD in the player at home that offers more excitement and characters kids can get invested in.