Starring: The voices of Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill
Directed By: Tom McGrath
Written By: Alan J. Schoolcraft, Brent Simons
Produced By: Lara Breay, Denise Nolan Cascino
Distributor: DreamWorks
Rating: PG
Running Time: Approximately 96 minutes
Website: megamind.com
Budget: $160,000,000
Genre: Animated, Comedy
Release Date: November 5, 2010
In 1992, DC Comics killed Superman. It was a major public event; the “death” issue sold copies in the millions and major media outlets picked up the story of the then 54-year-old icon’s demise. What the public didn’t know is what the comic book faithful already knew: death isn’t permanent, not in comic books, and if a hero falls, there’s always someone to step in and take their place.
This was before superheroes had stormed the box office, before they became a staple of big-budget fantasy, and well before the tropes of the superhero genre became familiar to pretty much everyone. Like any ascendant form of popular entertainment, superheroes have become easy targets for those who want to deconstruct, satirize, parody, or otherwise just mess around with what we think we know about the capes-and-spandex set.
DreamWorks’ Megamind operates from what’s a pretty basic premise: What if Lex Luthor beat Superman? (The blue-skinned, enlarged-cranium Lex stand-in bears more of a resemblance to the Superman villain, Brainiac, but that’s splitting nerds). Two babies are sent from dying alien worlds to Earth. One, taken in by wealthy parents, grows up to Metro City’s super-powered protector, Metro Man (voiced by Brad Pitt), while the other – he of the blue skin and giant noggin – grows up to be Metro Man’s greatest foe, Megamind (Will Ferrell).
Since the movie is called Megamind and not Metro Man, it’s not too hard to guess that this story belongs to the villain. After Metro Man is killed in one of Megamind’s generally pointless death traps, the evil blue genius revels in his chance to control Metro City (he insists on pronouncing it to rhyme with “atrocity”) in the absence of its greatest hero. Running amok with his sole minion, um, Minion (comedian David Cross), Megamind quickly realizes that without good, evil gets rather boring. It’s an opinion shared by Metro Man’s very own Lois Lane, reporter Roxanne Ritchi (Tina Fey), who finds herself just as devastated to have lost her Clark Kent. Following her advice and falling for her in the process, Megamind takes Roxanne’s wishes in the worst way possible and decides to manufacture a hero of his own to once again test his mettle. (This goes badly for him.)
Megamind isn’t the most incisive parody you’ll ever see, stocked with Shrek-style pop culture references and zingers there just for parents, but the subject matter is so rife with material to lampoon that the movie still gleefully runs with its premise. The ghost of 1979’s Superman movie looms large over this movie – there’s a nice extended homage to it that fans of Richard Donner’s superhero opus will enjoy – but Megamind knows both its audience and its limitations, so the spoofs are kept silly and the humor broad. A lot of the movie’s mileage comes from Ferrell and Fey, old “Saturday Night Live” cast mates whose rapport translates well to Megamind’s clueless romance and clumsy shots at redemption. The veteran cast and playful animation keeps things brisk, even if the emotional beats don’t really play as they would in more well-rounded superhero riffs like The Incredibles (Pixar being another ghost that haunts this movie; DreamWorks’ best animated features have yet to top them). Kids will thrill to the inventive character designs and the occasionally brilliant 3D animation, while adults will enjoy the mature tics and touches Ferrell and Fey contribute.
If veteran Madagascar director Tom McGrath isn’t quite able to elevate the screenplay by two novice screenwriters, it’s not for lack of trying. Visual panache and a sincere appreciation for the genre carry the movie. This is not a modern classic (need I mention Pixar again?), only a clever kids’ movie that won’t insult anyone’s intelligence (rare indeed!). Superman’s death lasted all of six months – he got better – but not before being replaced by four (!) imposters and reminding the world why they needed him in the first place. Megamind is like that: it cleverly sends up superheroes before affirming that they’re a real and necessary thing, and a placeholder isn’t quite the same. Reports of Metro Man’s death may or may not be greatly exaggerated, but the earnestly villainous Megamind is a suitable, if not entirely preferable, replacement – much like his movie.
Grade: 3 stars (out of 5)
