'Megamind' review

"Megamind" (Credit: DreamWorks Animation)

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Supervillain Megamind (Will Ferrell) and his arch-rival Metro Man (Brad Pitt) are locked in a seemingly endless battle for control of Metro City, until one day…Megamind wins. Suddenly he has everything he ever wanted, but no one left to fight and no more reasons to kidnap local journalist Roxanne Ritchie (Tina Fey). That sends the big baddie into an existential crisis with only one solution: create a new rival.

The buzz: The latest celebrity-studded DreamWorks Animation comedy arrives several months after summer’s surprise hit “Despicable Me” made a bad guy loveable. The similarly-themed but more superhero specific “Megamind” is directed by DreamWorks vet Tom McGrath (“Madagascar,” “Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa”).

The verdict: Even if family audiences hadn’t already seen “Despicable Me,” “Megamind” would still look like an incredibly weak variation on “The Incredibles.” Or a lame riff on Joss Whedon’s “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog,” or a comic book spin on the “don’t judge a book by its cover” themes of “Shrek.” There’s simply nothing original or inspired on display in “Megamind,” from its underwhelming vocal turns (Ferrell doesn’t change a thing from his previous screen bad guys) to the clichéd music choices (“Back in Black,” “Bad to the Bone,” “Bad”) to the dull use of 3D. It’s a passable time-killer for kids, more boring than painful for adults, but animated films have established a higher bar to clear. Just this year DreamWorks raised their own game considerably with “How to Train Your Dragon.” That success makes a forgettable concoction like this look even worse.

Did you know? Executive producer Ben Stiller was at one point going to voice Megamind but instead has a small vocal cameo.

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