Review of Space Chimps (2008) by Joseph P — 11 Oct 2011

I love film titles that without question tell you what you're in for before you lay down your $10, and no title so far this year is more descriptive than "Space Chimps". That title told me two things: #1, the movies is about chimps in space, and #2, I probably wouldn't like this movie very much. Both statements are very true.

This dismal, forgettable and poorly animated feature definitely does not fit into what has basically been one of the best summer seasons in recent memory. There are animated pictures, most notably the Pixar films, that critics hail as being enjoyable to both kids and parents. This is a film that could only be loved by very small children, and God help anyone else unfortunate enough to stumble into a theater showing this mess. The humor is gentle, but not very smart or sophisticated. The characters are poorly developed, and the story is limp and familiar.

This is basically a less enjoyable retelling of the 1986 pseudo-classic "Space Camp", only with monkeys standing in for Lea Thompson and her co-stars. With the world of animated films being dominated by the likes of Pixar and Shrek, you have to be a little sharper than this if you want to compete. All of the others have certainly raised the bar well above the likes of this dreck. It doesn't even have a funny or charismatic bad guy, which is just one more kiss of death for a movie like this.

If your age is in the single digits, you might enjoy "Space Chimps". Once you hit the ripe old age of 10, there's no reason for you to see this dead-on-arrival picture.