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Gareth von Kallenbach (980 KP) rated Planet 51 (2009) in Movies

Aug 8, 2019

Planet 51 (2009)

2009 | Action, Animation, Comedy

6.8

(11 Ratings)

Movie Rating

On a planet far from our own, green creatures are experiencing their own version of the 1950â€™s. Among them is Lem (Justin Long) who has just gotten his first job as an assistant at the local planetarium. When a space ship appears harboring an alien, human astronaut Captain Charles T. Baker (Dwayne Johnson), the fearful locals are not so friendly. It is up to Lem to save the astronaut and help his people learn not to fear the world beyond what they know.

The film is written for both children and adults, like a toned down version of â€œShrekâ€ with a more relevant moral feel. Putting the characters in the 1950s adds to the filmâ€™s charm, allowing kids access to the blatant characterizations of the time period, such as the bumbling science professor and the hippy protestor who maintains from the start that the alien is friendly.

Other characters of note are Lemâ€™s comic book and movie fanatic best friend, Skiff (Seann William Scott) and the military commander General Grawl (Gary Oldman) who is hell-bent on capturing the alien. Children will also enjoy the two pet creatures from a local alien dog that excretes acid to a rock-obsessed robot sent to pick up local specimens for Baker.

â€œPlanet 51â€ is wholly entertaining. It provides some mature insight by displaying how we would appear to another culture if we ever did encounter aliens. This switch of perspective is sure to make children think and laugh over the simple cross-cultural mishaps that occur while Lem and Baker are attempting to find common ground.

A delightful, animated romp, â€œPlanet 51â€ will make you hope for a groovy 1960â€™s sequel.

Kudos

LeftSideCut (3778 KP) rated The Babysitter (2017) in Movies

Dec 5, 2019 (Updated Jan 22, 2020)

The Babysitter (2017)

2017 | Comedy, Horror

6.7

(31 Ratings)

Movie Rating

On the surface, The Babysitter looks like a by the numbers comedy horror, but thanks in no small part to Samara Weaving, it's actually a bit more than that.

Samara Weaving plays Bee, the titular babysitter, who watches over (a not so convincing)12 year old Cole (Judah Lewis) when his parents head off on vacation.
After Cole has gone to bed, he secretly stays up to see what Bee gets up to after hours, and things take a bloody turn when it become apparent that Bee and her friends are part of a Satan worshipping murder cult.
It's a simple and silly premise, but it works pretty well in this instance.

The opening 20 minutes is all out silly comedy. The chemistry between the two leads is clearly strong and a huge highlight. It's obvious that the two of them were having a blast filming this.
When the Satan worshipping murder cult part comes into play, the gore comes thick and fast (there are some genuinely nasty moments), but it continues to be funny.
The Babysitter made me laugh quite a bit, with some ridiculous dialogue and self awareness, especially from Robbie Amell.
Director McG makes a lot of Scott Pilgrim-esque style choices, but never goes too overboard, making sure they land for the most part.

The rest of the characters are portrayed as cliché annoying millennial types, obviously written as characters that we want to die, but the joke wears thin pretty quickly, especially in the case of Bella Thorne's character.
The movie is also guilty of the often seen try-hard pop culture discussion sequences, which are a little cringey, but these kind of complaints are minimal.

With an 85 minute runtime, The Babysitter is a swift and fun horror comedy romp that has a decent lead. A solid 7/10.