Directed by: Tim Johnson (Antz, Over the Edge)
Written by: Tom J. Astle (Get Smart, Epic) & Matt Ember (Failure to Launch, Epic)
Released: March 21, 2015
Rated: PG
The Hook: Sheldon!
Yep. The moment I recognized Jim Parsons’ voice I knew I was watching this movie. It’s that moment, in the car, when Oh is dancing and his hands go up in the air. You could not not know it’s Sheldon. Of course I IMDb’d it to be sure.
Plot: The story is about Oh. He’s an ‘individual’ amongst the many in his alien species. He’s a dare-to-be-different kind of guy in a no-lets-not-be kind of world. He’s the guy everyone pretends to be busy around so they don’t have to talk to. Oh’s species is looking for a new home to escape another alien species who is looking to destroy them. They set their sights on Earth. This alien take over isn’t your typical alien take over though. They scoop up all the humans and actually put them in one section of Earth while they inhabit everything else. During the take over, a human girl, Tip, is separated from her mom and is determined to reunite with her. Oh, meanwhile, makes a huge mistake and sends an invitation to his party with directions to his home to the whole universe, including the aliens who are hunting his species. He runs from the police and ends up bumping into Tip. After a rocky introduction–since, you know, his species took over her planet, they end up working together to get Tip to her mom.
“What is the purpose of your face?” <– Best line ever!
It’s such a cute story! I love it. It’s your typical “I teach you, you teach me, we learn together” plot line, which are found in most children movies, but it’s packed with humor which doesn’t make it unbearable for adults. It also has a moral. I love movies that teach an subtle lesson. Key word: Subtle. And may be this lesson was pretty obvious, but since it’s done in a funny way, I didn’t feel like it was preaching.
Jim Parsons is Oh. He did such a good job for his first voice-acting. Oh is so relatable as a character. Who hasn’t felt, even for a little bit, that they were weird because they weren’t like everyone else? I know I have. And he’s just trying to be friendly. He has a good heart and means well. I get why some of his peers thinks he’s over-the-top, because he kinda is, but, again, good heart. Rhianna also does well as Tip, or Gratuity. How cool is that name?! Gratuity. I love it. The movie focuses on these two characters, a lot, so you don’t see much of the supporting cast, but Steve Martin does great job as Captain Smek, who’s the over-the-top Captain of Oh’s people. And Matt Jones voice-acts for Kyle who is tasked with the mission of tracking down Oh and getting his password to his account since Oh chose to make it unique *gasps!*.
Graphics and camera angles were awesome. I’d deem this movie “visually stunning.” I love the colors they used for this world and I loved how the meshed Oh’s world and Tip’s world (Earth) into one world.
Overall, I’d add this movie to my collection and since it’s visually stunning, I’d get the Blu Ray version. It’s worth the investment. It’s funny and enjoyable. It teaches a lesson. I would watch it more than once, definitely. And on that note, I’d recommend this movie to everyone. It’s a good family movie. The kind you can watch with your parents 😉 .
Photo credits: Wikipedia & YouTube