Review: Igor

Igor

OPENING: 09/19/2008

STUDIO: MGM

TRAILER: Trailer

ACCOMPLICES: Official Site

The Charge
He’s got a monster of a problem.

Opening Statement
Why is it that so many animated films want to be Shrek, and so few want to be Finding Nemo? Pixar has made some very fine films that have been hits with critics and with audiences. There are a lot of factors that play into this, but here are two of the key points. First, Pixar tends to avoid celebrity stunt casting, always selecting the right voice actor for the role. It may be a celebrity, it may not be, but it’s always a good choice. Second, Pixar creates sincere films that rely on good storytelling rather than cheap pop culture references. A film like Wall-E will still play well in twenty years. Shark Tale will not. Nonetheless, most animated movies (both in theatres and on the cheaper “direct to video” market) aspire to recapture the success of the Shrek films, blending a rather formulaic story with a load of recognizable voices, pop songs, and movie riffs. Sadly, Igor is yet another film that falls into this trap. However, it does show sparks of originality at times.


Facts of the Case
The film takes place in a city called Malaria, where there are perpetual thunderstorms. In this city, a bunch of evil scientists create terrible inventions. Each year, the scientists threaten to unleash their worst new invention on the world unless they are paid a large ransom. This keeps all the citizens of Malaria (and particularly their king, voiced by Jay Leno) very wealthy. Each mad scientist has a hunchback assistant. Every assistant is named “Igor”. They all go to Igor school, where they learn to act in an oafish manner, pull switches, and slur their words. One of these Igors (John Cusack) is not content with his current job, and aspires to become an evil scientist someday.

An opportunity arises when Igor’s boss (John Cleese) accidentally kills himself, leaving Igor free reign over the lab. With the help of a rather dumb talking brain in a jar (Sean Hayes) and a suicidal immortal rabbit (Steve Buscemi), Igor creates his masterpiece: a giant woman who is completely indestructible. Unfortunately, the woman (Molly Shannon) is not very evil. Igor assumes something is wrong, and sends her off to get brainwashed in the same manner that Alex did in A Clockwork Orange. Unfortunately, the woman was subjected to the wrong brainwashing video (to be precise, an episode of James Lipton’s Inside the Actors’ Studio), and now insists that she wants to be an actress. Can Igor find a way to corrupt this sweet and indestructible woman in time for the evil science fair?


The Evidence
Before you start thinking that Igor is some sort of subversive piece of children’s entertainment, let me assure you that it isn’t. Eventually, everyone learns that being evil is bad and that being good is… well, good. The hero gets the girl, the bad guy gets his due, and the day is saved. Blah blah blah. Despite a considerable chunk of innovative touches early on, the story here is still the same old thing we’ve all seen ten billion times before. I recognize that the whole “if you follow your dreams you can achieve anything” idea is a great message for kids. I’m just tired of hearing it over and over, presented in the same old dreary fashion.

The animation in the film occasionally recalls such stop-motion efforts as The Nightmare Before Christmas and The Corpse Bride, two wonderful films from Tim Burton and Henry Selick. Those movies worked so well because they took their stories seriously. Yes, there were plenty of jokes in both. But when the serious and moving moments arrived, the films did not back away from them by making nervous ironic jokes. They plunged in full speed ahead. Why are these films so desperate to avoid some genuine feeling? Would it be so bad to drop the semi-hip façade and just play things straight for a while?



All of that said, Igor has some considerable merits that should be noted. First of all, John Cusack is splendid in the leading role, lending the character some surprising enthusiasm (we haven’t heard much of that from Cusack in his recent live-action roles). Steve Buscemi is hilarious as the desperately suicidal bunny, who attempts to off himself at least a dozen times in this film. I’m not sure how appropriate this is for kids, but I laughed. Eddie Izzard also has a lot of fun as the film’s primary villain. Unfortunately, there are misses to go along with the hits. John Cleese, Sean Hayes, and Jay Leno decide to shout all of their lines. Guys, just because this is a kid’s movie doesn’t mean that yelling will make things better.

Oh, but I was in the middle of praising the film. Um, well… there’s some nice animation, considering the budget. The soundtrack is a bit refreshing; with a half-dozen Louis Prima songs instead of the predictable top forty hits. I also enjoyed another questionable-for-kids moment; the film’s finale when a group of blind orphans sing “I Can See Clearly Now.”

Closing Statement
It’s a bit tasteless, but unexpected enough to make me giggle. Still, when you combine some elements that push the PG rating with the fact that Igor is basically more of the same, I can’t really recommend dragging the kiddies along to see this one.


The Verdict

5/10

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