Review of Monster House (2006) by Andrew S — 11 Feb 2011

"Well, if those are the teeth, and that's the tongue, then that must be the uvula.

- Oh, so it's a "girl" house...".

Gil Kenan's 'Monster House' from 2006, was for me a real sleeper hit. People only talk about all the Disney's, Dreamworks' and Pixar's out there but every once in a while, some other studio comes out with noteworthy animations. In this case it was Sony.

The story is about a young kid who's neighbour is a grumpy old man. If anything touches his lawn... it's gone. The grumpster takes it to his own collection. Why is he so mad and angry at kids. Is it because his house is alive and has its own issues against kids !?!

But that's enough of the story. Robert Zemeckis is the producer and that can be seen. The film starts with a tribute to Zemeckis' most successful film, 'Forrest Gump'. The same technique that was used in his 'The Polar Express', is used in 'Monster House'. Performance capture is the name and I'm still not that convinced. This film has the same fault as 'Polar'. At times it looks very detailed and all that, but in my opinion, the people look rather... dead? 'Monster House' is by no means the most beautiful animation. Not by a long shot.

What I enjoyed most about 'Monster House' was that it felt like something completely different. This film is not for the smallest ones. Don't you be fooled by the genre, 'Monster House' will definitely scare the youngest with its scariest scenes. On the other hand, this film is also very funny'. I enjoyed the films humor and characters, especially Jon Heder's Skull, who has a small role in the movie.

The actors who do the voices, come out with excellent performances. Steve Buscemi as the old man, Jason Lee, Kevin James, Maggie Gyllenhall and the deep voiced Kathleen Turner. A good cast all together.

'Monster House' is a lot of fun, looks good in a different way (don't expect Pixarish detail) and will surely satisfy at least the older persons who were forced to watch an animation with the kids... Just don't tell 'em that the film isn't suitable for kids under 10. Let 'em cry the next night. Suits them well.