Am using ciao more for consumer purposes only now. I still sign in and read ops and may occasionally...
Am using ciao more for consumer purposes only now. I still sign in and read ops and may occasionally write one for the database, but no longer consider myself part of the community. Timmy/Mike.
Member since:28.04.2001
Reviews:55
Members who trust:124
Scooby-Doo the movie is a tongue-in-cheek yarn that capitalises on nostalgia for Hanna Barbera’s classic low-budget animated series. Scooby-Doo remains animated, obviously, and has plenty off opportunities to offer his classic “rooby-rooby roo” in response to Shaggy’s (played by Matthew Lillard) “scooby-scooby doo where are you?”. A surprising cast of stars have been enticed into appearing in this film (one for Mystery Inc. to solve) and alongside Lillard we have Sarah Michelle Gellar (Daphne), Freddie Prinze Jr. (Fred), Linda Cardellini (Velma) and Rowan Atkinson as Emile Mondavarius, the reclusive owner of Spooky Island.
The best thing about the film, strangely, is that it’s bad, really bad. Not the kind of bad that makes you cringe and leaves you torn between laughter and tears, rather an intentional kind of bad that leaves you crying with laughter as opposed to embarrassment. This intended poorness is evident from the beginning, when, after “those pesky kids” solve get another not-so ghoulish mystery they have the cheesiest break-up of all time that somehow finishes just before they all start sticking their tongues out at each other. Anyway Shaggy and Scooby are both a bit sad at the others leaving and are cast throughout as loveable despite the others’ petty squabbles. They live as hippies eating copious amount of junk food (although without becoming obese) and refuse to do any more mystery solving, for anyone or anything.
But then Mr.
Mondavarius makes them an offer they can’t refuse. Money and other such things fail, with Shaggy and Scooby attempting to get rid of the messenger and return to their hot dogs, until eventually one clause makes them reconsider. That is, of course, an unlimited supply of food!
Food is an essential element in the movie and the scenes in which Shaggy and Scooby stuff themselves silly are humourous for nostalgic adults and young children alike- particularly at the end when they each down a pot of chillies with exceedingly funny results! That particular scene is brilliant, the sheer innocent stupidity of the purported consequences provides one of the better touches of the apparently childish humour that is evident throughout. Indeed in places the humour might be too childish for children themeslves to enjoy; on these occassions it is strictly for the amusement of proper mature adults. Having said that there is a scene where the loveable yet disgusting pair have a burping and farting contest, which is bound to appeal to the distinctly un-angelic younger generation.
Now seasoned Scooby fans should no that somewhere with a name like Spooky Island means trouble, and this is no exception. However Scooby and Shaggy aren’t going to tackle the monsters of the island alone- no prizes are given for guessing who else Mr. Mondavarius persuades to help solve his little problem; the rest of Mystery Inc. of course! Still barely on speaking terms the group set out individually to solve the mystery, but inevitable the strange circumstances bring them back together with all the corny remorse that that entails. There is one unlikely twist involving Shaggy, which I won’t spoil, but that adds a new dimension to his character that generates a few laughs despite not really suiting his role. Personally I think the film might have been better without the dimension, but then again it might not have been, so it’s a so-so development.
Apart from this however the plot develops along its usual course, with plenty of scary monsters, hilarious disguises and scooby snacks. The mystery is that all the thrill-seeking punters who arrive at the island (which is a theme park) all become totally unanimated and disciplined by the time they leave, as if they’ve been brainwashed. Our fear-free characters set off into the spooky castle that dominates the island (Scooby enticed by some scooby snacks, Shaggy by the alternative of standing alone outside the castle) and come across some strange monsters, various near-deadly traps and a small pyramid containing some agent hierogliphs inscribed by the people who inhabited the island before the evils of capitalism turned it into a big bad amusement park. Throw in a strange man performing a voodoo ritual with a dead chicken and you’ve got a perfect mystery… just which member oif Mystery Inc. is going to be kindapped first?
Ultimately of course our heroes prevail (I hope that doesn’t spoil it too much) and the identity of the villain is discovered, along with the reason why all the punters leaving the island appear so lifeless. It isn’t quite the simple solution that is usually discovered, but then it isn’t the usual kind of villain… and of course it is very funny!
The humour in the film comes from the classic characters created by Hanna Barbera and from taking the micky out of them. Shaggy and Scooby are as pathetic and scared as ever, Velma is as dull as ever, Fred is something of an ego-maniac and Daphne has developped some handy kung-fu skills, which create some higly amusing situations. Many of the jokes revolve around Daphne’s propensity to be kidnapped and Velma’s reliance on her glasses, which are to some extent ‘in’ jokes. Daphne’s determination to solve the mystery alone through her fantastic strength and intelligence is particularly laughable.
The acting is generally excellent. It might not sound hard, but I’ve no doubt acting badly is far more difficult than it looks, and those involved pull it off well. While hardly oscar-winning perfomances the cast successfully pull off a script of an unusual nation. The animated Scooby-Doo is wonderful, while like the acting and the script, the monsters are true to the original in that they are incredibly poor animations. Still some of the animated sequences must be difficult to execute and the production team have acquitted themselves excellently.
Like Shrek and Monsters Inc. before it this was a high profile film that appealed to adults as well as children. Unlike those films however it will have little appeal to adults who haven’t previously seen or enjoyed scooby-doo and will probably only appeal to young children under 10 years old. And in facts it’s a totally different type of film, but, well, you get the point…?
At a mere 83 minutes long this is more like a feature length episode than a full-on film but it’s certainly worth every minute of it. There’s some infrequent mild language, some slightly sexual references (which are very funny) and violence in the form of surreal hand-to-hand fighting. The film is rated PG but really there isn’t much to worry about, unless you feel children might be scared by the monsters. If in doubt you can watch in first, there are only 83 minutes of it after all.
Definitely reccommended, very funny and an easy way to pass the time.
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A very helpful review. I still haven't got round to watching this yet. Steve :o)
franproc 29.09.2003 18:50
But this was so bad and so wrong, so horribly, horribly wrong! A more apropriate title for your op would have been 'ropey, ropey crap'. And I thought that the acting was awful, they were really badly wooden.
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freespirit1402 14.07.2003 23:09
im one of those people you listed in disadvantage so ill gove it a miss but nice review
Ghosts haunting spooky old factories? Hip kids being brainwashed? The Darkopalypse about ... more
to engulf the world?Scooby-Doo, where are you? But the gang have all fallen out and dissolved the Mystery Inc partnership for good. Jinkeys! Luckily a strange invi...
Postage & Packaging: £1.21 Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days...
Ghosts haunting spooky old factories? Hip kids being brainwashed? The Darkopalypse about ... more
to engulf the world?Scooby-Doo, where are you? But the gang have all fallen out and dissolved the Mystery Inc partnership for good. Jinkeys! Luckily a strange invi...
Postage & Packaging: Free! Availability: Usually dispatched within 24 hours...
ZOINKS! Two years after a clash of egos forced Mystery Inc. to close itsdoors, Scooby-Doo ... more
and his clever crime-solving cohorts Fred (FREDDIE PRINZE JR.), Daphne (SARAH MICHELLE GELLAR), Shaggy (MATTHEW LILLARD) and Velma (LINDA CARDELLINI) are individu...
Advantages: Just like the cartoons, Matthew Lillard carries off Shaggy's voice superbly, Hardly notice that Scooby is an animation Disadvantages: If only it had come out about 15 years ago - I would have absolutely loved to see this as a kid!!!
Advantages: Brilliant for the under-12 audience Disadvantages: Lacklustre (and I'll use that word a lot!) at times, little chemistry between cast members
Advantages: Just like the cartoons, Matthew Lillard carries off Shaggy's voice superbly, Hardly notice that Scooby is an animation Disadvantages: If only it had come out about 15 years ago - I would have absolutely loved to see this as a kid!!!
![Scooby Doo - Live Action Movie [DVD] [2002]](http://picnicb.ciao.com/uk/78529407.jpg "Scooby Doo - Live Action Movie [DVD] [2002]")
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