For years, super-villains ranging from Magneto to the Joker have tried countless times to take over the world or destroy their superhero nemesis. These plans have always seemed flawed because they propose a crucial question; what would the villain do with their time if they succeeded? There would be no more "good guys" to battle or nations to fall prey to their nefarious devices. In all the years of the hero/enemy relationship no one has ever tried to examine this concept until now. DreamWorks Pictures newest movie, "Megamind," explores this theory in a not so classic way.
Most classic interpretations of the superhero vs. evil villain scenario would go as follows: villain kidnaps damsel, damsel cries for help, hero stops the villain, damsel gets rescued, and villain retreats to his secret hideout. In recent years, this scenario has been up to interpretation and has produced some very memorable films like "Megamind." What makes this movie unique is that it answers the question of what if the villain beat the hero. Megamind, voiced by Will Ferrell, is a self-described evil genius with aspirations of taking over Metro City. Standing in Megamind's way is his long time rival and local celebrity, Metro Man, voiced by Brad Pitt. After finally defeating his enemy, Megamind finds himself in a world without excitement having destroyed the only person that could ever beat him. It is then that Megamind must decide if the life of an evil genius is what he really wants.
A large part of the success of the film is the original direction it had thanks to DreamWorks Animation. Since 2001, this company has produced now classic movies like "Shrek," "Madagascar," "Kung Fu Panda," and the recent "How to Train Your Dragon." The common factor between these movies and "Megamind" is that they explore fun and interesting concepts that few have portrayed before. People have seen the classics time and time again, but it is not very often that you can see an ogre with a heart of gold or a super villain who wants to know what it feels like to be the hero. "Megamind" is very successful in this respect because it is giving audiences everywhere something that they have never seen before.
When seeing an animated feature such as "Megamind," you have to learn to enjoy the little things. The subtle nuances of this movie add to the already unique world in which it takes place. For one, not very often will you find an animated movie that has AC/DC and Guns N' Roses on its soundtrack. It is hard to find Will Ferrell doing a mixed impression of Marlon Brando in both his portrayal of Don Vito Corleone in "The Godfather" and Jor-El from "Superman." These are just two of the reasons why "Megamind" is one of the top movies to see this month. Audiences seem to agree, as the film earned $66 million in its opening weekend.
Christopher Spall can be reached at christopher.spall@student.shu.edu.
