Film Reviews

A Monster in Paris

• Rating:
• Director: Bibo Bergeron
• Starring: (voices of) Vanessa Paradis, Sean Lennon, Adam Goldberg, Jay Harrington, Danny Huston, Catherine O'Hara.
• Details: France/90mins TBC

A charming enough tale that was initially produced in French, this will be a welcome enough distraction for the particularly young until the next Pixar or Dreamworks effort. A cut above the likes of Alpha and Omega, the quirky animation only adds to the quirky ambience. Set in Paris in 1910, a shy young projectionist named Emile has feelings of a romantic nature for his pretty co-worker. Just as he's about to contemplate, maybe, asking her out, his boisterous friend, Raoul turns up and ruins the moment. Somehow finding themselves embarking on a hunt for a "monster" terrorising citizens of the French capital, what they discover is a misunderstood creature in love with a beautiful local singer. Produced by famed French filmmaker Luc Besson, there's a strong stylistic edge to Monster in Paris. The tone is very whimsical and the characters predictably slapstick, while the message it pushes is one of understanding and substance. It's a hard movie to hate, but there's still very little here to appeal to anyone old enough to read the credits. So if it's a quiet afternoon you want just bring the kids and enjoy the popcorn. We've been somewhat spoiled by the big budgeted likes of Puss in Boots and Kung Fu Panda recently, and Monster in Paris is a solid animated flick on a much more intimate scale.

Review by Mike Sheridan