Synopsis: A specially trained squad of guinea pigs must stop a crazy billionaire from taking over the world.
Release Date: July 24, 2009 MPAA Rating: PG-13
Genre(s): Children and Family, Animation
Film Review
Production
From the moment the film begins you discover that it is lifeless. The guinea pig characters are cute to look at, but the personalities each one holds are far from entertaining. They are stereotypical (not shocking for a Disney picture) and repetitive. The adventurous nature of the film one may expect never finds its grounding, leaving little more than a boring story line and forgetful characters.
Animation
The film is a mixture of animation and live action and it melds the two together adequately. What it does not do is give enough reason for the 3-D selling point. There are a few scenes where the 3-D is utilized but there is really no point to it overall. It would have been better to keep it 2-D and spend more time on the actual screenplay.
Comedy Factor
Where is the playful childish laughter one expects from an animated comedy? Somewhere else. Aside from a (very) few funny jokes and predicaments, mostly from the character Hurley, the sound of laughter in the theatre is nonexistent. The film tries so very hard to grab laughs based solely on the personality traits of the guinea pigs but the characters are simply not funny. With nothing else to go with comedy is something you yearn for throughout, and never receive.
Cast and Crew
- Director(s): Hoyt Yeatman
- Producer(s): The Wibberleys
- Screenwriter(s): Zach Galifianakis (voice of Ben)Nicolas Cage (voice of Speckles)Sam Rockwell (voice of Darwin)
- Story: Penelope Cruz (voice of Juarez)
- Cast: Steve Buscemi (voice of Bucky)Bill NighyJon Favreau (voice of Hurley) Tracy Morgan (voice of Blaster)Mark GoldblattBojan Bazelli
- Editor(s):
- Cinematographer: Trevor Rabin
- Production Designer(s):
- Costume Designer:
- Casting Director(s):
- Music Score:
- Music Performed By:
- Country Of Origin: USA
