Toon Zone Talkback - "Megamind" Is a Mega-Disappointment

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This is the talkback thread for "Megamind" Is a Mega-Disappointment.

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After I finished up this one, I went around and rustled up a bunch of other reviews when it was released, and was surprised at how positively received this movie was. Maybe it's that reviewers were suffering from excessive superhero backlash or something, but I'm puzzled at what a lot of the mainstream critics were seeing in this one.

Anyway, it's relatively soft box office means it's probably not going to be one of DreamWorks' endlessly franchised titles that was always meant to be a six-movie saga from inception ;).
 
I ended up liking this one more than 'Despicable Me', where outside of the 'It's so fluffy!' bit, the only part of that movie I enjoyed was the Minions.

In order of ranking:

- How to Train Your Dragon
- Madagascar 1, 2
- Mega Mind
- Shrek 1, 2
- Despicable Me
- Shrek 3

I have yet to see Shrek 4 and Kung Fu Panda, so I can't really rank those.
 
Maybe the reason why i enjoyed that movie so much is because:


I never saw (or saw and liked or read about and felt the need to check it out) any of those?

And "superhero backlash"? Seriously?

I felt this movie is a love letter to superheroics if anything.
 
I like Megamind! And I'm not a big DreamWorks fan, either, so that's really saying something. I thought it had a compelling story, one that I'd certainly never seen before (what happens if the bad guy wins? He gets bored and makes himself a new hero to fight), and it worked for me because the characters were so much fun. Megamind in particular is so full of likeable bombast despite the utter ridiculousness of everything he does. And it was funny - the humor comes from the characters, and it's not a bunch of strung-together pop culture jokes like DreamWorks is infamous for (sure, there are a few gratuitous references here and there - like Megamind disguising himself as Marlon Brando from Superman, and a very random Karate Kid joke - but not enough to get annoying).

Between this and How to Train Your Dragon, 2010 was a good year for DreamWorks. If only they hadn't also trotted out Shrek Forever After, they'd have a clean record for the whole year.

(And for what it's worth, I thought Despicable Me was lame. Now there's a movie with weak humor, cardboard characters, and a predictable plot...)
 
Agreed. Megamind may not be "The Incredibles," but its a perfectly servicable film in its own right, and its one of the few Dreamworks films I can say I truly enjoyed. Part of me is sad that it didn't do nearly as well as some of their more popular (but IMO worse) movies, but since this also ensures that it won't be getting an unecessary sequel, I guess I can't really be that upset. ;)
 
...or maybe they genuinely liked it?

Wow. I had absolutely no interest in Megamind, but now I feel like going out and renting it just to spite this terrible "review".
 
Out of the 3 Dreamworks film, Megamind was my 2nd favorite released last year, the first was Dragon, and last was Shrek 4. I found some enjoyment in Megamind, but that mostly had to do with Will Ferrell delivery and Megamind interactions with the rest of the cast. I thought it had a nice story, I don't care if it's been done before, since this was actually my first exposure to this idea, and I thought it was handled well.
 
Will Ferrell did an awesome job in this movie. His role absolutely eclipsed every other movie he's been in, simply because his sense of humor wasn't so obnoxious here.

Safe movie or not, Megamind was a great film to me.
 
Megamind was a comedy and The Incredibles took itself seriously. They're no where near similar enough to be compared except for the fact that it has superheroes and villains.
 
I loved their use of Michael Jackson's 'Bad' at the end, and I wanted to applaud over their awesome use of 'Welcome to the Jungle'.
 
Uh, did you watch The Incredibles? Sure, it wasn't as comedic as Megamind, but I would not say it was totally serious. They are both CG animated features that are love letters to the superhero genre. I would absolutely say they are similar enough to compare to each other. But certainly different enough to appreciate individually.
 
Just because Megamind was sort of a comedy, doesn't mean it was a parody. It wasn't. I mean, sure, Metroman is a obvious parody of Superman, but the movie itself is about Megamind's character development. And it does a pretty darn good job at it. Sure, it's generic and predictable, but every story's been told before. What separates the good from the bad is what Megamind says himself, "Presentation!"
 
Megamind's relative lack of originality is not what bothers me about it. I get that Megamind is a "how are we getting there?" movie rather than a "where are we going?" movie. My problem is that I don't find the "how are we getting there" stuff to be done particularly well, or particularly interesting, especially when compared to other stuff that trod the same ground and DID do things that were unusual or different or striking, or just plain executed it all better.

My take on this movie comes from watching and reading probably more than my fair share of superhero genre material than the average guy on the street. Judging by the busiest forums and most-read news articles on the site, most forum members can say something similar. That background meant that I ended up being reminded of all those other movies and comics and novels that have done the same thing, only better. If this is your first time being exposed to this, I can totally see how you'd find it to be a fresh and original take on superhero genre stories, just like I think Cars is so popular with kids because it's their first exposure to the "arrogant athlete learns not to be a jerk" story. To me, though, this felt more like Gus Van Sant's shot-for-shot remake of Psycho or a Beatles tribute band. No matter how well done it might be (and I didn't even find it that well done), it's still just a copy that I thought was too self-consciously a copy.

Also, I didn't laugh. At least for the first hour or so of the movie. I get that it's not really a comedy, but it's definitely trying to be comedic (and, IMO, not really succeeding).

And yes, "superhero backlash." I see a lot of critics (and even fans) that are tiring of superhero genre films, with some reviews boiling down to, "Yes, it's another superhero movie." More than a few were talking as though Megamind was their first exposure to a lot of these variations on the genre.


About all I can say about this is that you're missing out.


Well, if you watch it and don't like it, don't blame me :p. Unless you're planning to like it ahead of time just to spite me, in which case you can save yourself some time, energy, and a rental fee and just say you liked it without watching it and I will consider myself duly spited.
 
When I went to go see this movie I honestly wasn't really expecting it to be anything that special. Honestly, I was thinking it would follow the "Dr. Horrible" story line where the "good guy is a jerk" and "Bad guy is sympathetic but still a bad guy"

I was more than pleasantly surprised. I saw the "non spoiler" preview for it, so I had no idea what would happen. I didn't even know the character Tighten existed until I saw it. It was an adventure to me and I loved every minute of it. I love seeing movies like this when I haven't the slightest idea which way the storyline is going.

I was so impressed I actually saw it in the theaters three times with different friends. When I have the money I'm going to own it one day.

I enjoyed "Despicable Me" as well, but I already knew from the beginning where the storyline was going so it wasn't as fun. it was a good movie regardless. :)

In my opinion, "Megamind" was a lot more interesting to watch and you learn to really enjoy all the characters and I definitely recommend it to just about anyone.
 
I found there was one good message to this thing. I liked how this movie seemed to take a club to the idea of demography being destiny, how it sent a message about people being more than what society might say they are or are supposed to be. Megamind was cast as a misfit and an outcast that decided pretty early on that the "bad one" was all he could be, but the story makes him realize that wasn't true.
Metro Man's midlife crisis just came off as shallow and spectacularly uncompelling in comparison, unfortunately, but oh well.
I do think there's something worthwhile in that bottom line, which gives the film at least some value even if the silly & self-aware take on superheroics doesn't offer anything fresh. I definitely cede that it's more amusing fun than a laugh-inducing film. I'm not sure I'd see it again anytime soon, but I do think kids could benefit from seeing it.

For all I know this actually is the least good Dreamworks movie of 2010, though. I've got to get to How To Train Your Dragon. Despicable Me is a film I'll have to check out too.
 
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