Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed Movie Review:


The classic Hanna-Barbera cartoon about an inquisitive group of friends and their terrified canine companion has enchanted and delighted kids for the better part of twenty-five years.

When the live-action motion picture was released back in 2001, I was a little afraid that old Scooby would lose some of his charm after being transformed into a more realistic CGI version of his former self. I was also scared that the innocence and charm of the quintet of kids would be forever tarnished. Sadly I was right.

That brings me to the sequel. The sequel seems to have gone back and fixed all the problems I complained about in the original. Don’t get me wrong there are still some hang-ups annoyances and hair-pullers but for the most part it’s a huge improvement over the 2001 version.

The Scooby Gang (or Mystery Inc.) which includes Fred (Freddie Prinze Jr.), Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar), Velma (Linda Cardellini) and Shaggy (Matthew Lillard) arrive at a museum opening which is featuring an exhibit dedicated to the mysterious exploits of our heroes. The curator, Patrick Wisely (Seth Green) is a big fan and his new exhibit seems to be the talk of Coolsville. Covering the event is television reporter Heather Jasper-Howe (Alicia Silverstone) who wants nothing more than to get the story.

All is pleasant for our gang as they take the museum tour and get reacquainted with some of their more famous villains (which a lot of us will remember from the cartoon series). Velma also discovers she has a crush on Patrick.

The party implodes when the costume of The Pterodactyl Ghost comes to life and begins wreaking havoc on the museum guests. If that wasn’t bad enough a masked figure swears vengeance upon Mystery Inc. As the plot thickens more monsters arise and a figure from the groups past (Peter Boyle) reemerges. How does he fit into the mystery? How are the ghosts coming back? And are Scooby and Shaggy really full-blown detectives?

Can you believe it? The film actually has a concrete plot this time as well as they have found a way to journey back and visit key elements from the series. On top of that the visuals are outstanding for a kid’s film.

I really loved the whole transformation scene involving Shaggy and Scooby and frig full of colorful beakers. That felt so much like the goofiness that these characters endured every Saturday morning way back when. I also really enjoyed the crazy half-pike trip down the side of the mountain with those skinny cyclops-aliens in hot pursuit. It was nice to see how much Linda Cardellini was able to bring to her portrayal of Velma. She was really the only shining moment I found in the original. She is once again, spectacular.

Lillard’s Shaggy and his interaction with the CGI mutt has really come along as we actually see and laugh at the chemistry he has with his companion. I actually did start to feel like they were actually Shaggy and Scooby, laughs and all.

The film’s pitfalls for me were the ridiculous musical numbers which included one with Ruben Studdard from American Idol. Those musical numbers really hurt. Other annoyances mainly dealt with the overly-kid-friendly jokes but it is a family film.

But as cartoons-come-to-life movies go, Scooby Doo 2 is a monstrous improvement over the original. I wonder if they could do a “Captain Caveman” movie now? Just kidding.

(3.5 out of 5)

So Says the Soothsayer

Dean Kish

At the grand opening of a museum exhibit dedicated to the masked villains apprehended by Mystery Inc over their many adventures, the gang are confronted by a new foe that has the power to make the fake monsters real. Suffering a crushing defeat at his hand, Fred (Prinze Jr.), Daphne (Gellar), Velma (Cardellini), Shaggy (Lillard) and Scooby Doo have to solve this mystery to regain their reputation in Coolsville but this means going up against the toughest foes they have encountered but this time they are real.

Scooby and the Gang return for their second adventure and the good news for fans is that it is more of the same highjinx.

The first movie was fun but nothing special. The story was flimsy at best but the main villain reveal at the end was a real highlight. What made it memorable were the performances of Matthew Lillard as Shaggy and Linda Cardellini as Velma. The good news is that the filmmakers have realised this and made those two characters the emphasis of the sequel.

To quote a good friend “Matthew Lillard was born to play Shaggy” and this is probably his career-defining role. The lives and breathes the way out Hippy and is probably one of the best TV to film characterisations to grace the silver screen. This is real credit to an actor who usually comes across as annoying and not very talented in every other role he has ever played.

Linda Cardellini is becoming a really good character actor and the role of Velma shows this to be true. If you have seen her in TVs “ER” or “Freaks and Geeks” you will know that she is as far from Velma’s geeky persona as you could get. This is a very talented and beautiful woman playing a geek’s dream and she does it really well.

Freddy Prinze Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar are fine as Fred and Daphne but their characters were never the most interesting in the cartoon anyway. Fred just comes across as being full of himself again and Daphne is just played as a more purple fashion conscious version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The support is also better in this one. Seth Green is as likeable as ever as Velma’s love interest. He is an actor who can play the geek with real charm and also has a gift for comedy. Peter Boyle and Tim Blake Nelson are also good even though they are not on screen for two long. The same can be said of Alicia Silverstone but it is just nice to see her on the big screen again anyway.

The computer-generated animation of Scooby Doo has been greatly improved from the original but it still isn’t that great compared to other CG characters like Yoda, Hulk and Gollum. Scooby and some of the villains look far too CG in places, making the effects look very cheap but cheerful. Scooby is still a good character however and he really interacts well with Shaggy, much to the credit of Lillard.

The story is a lot better in this one, with the gang having to face all of their previous foes who appeared on the opening credits of the TV show. It also twists and turns enough to keep you guessing who the masked villain really is and throws in a few good laughs along the way.

Scooby Doo 2: Monster Unleashed is just as much fun as the original movie. Kids will laugh at the antics of Shaggy and Scooby and the adults will remember the medley of ghosts from the cartoon that the gang have to face. Now where are those Scooby snacks?

Star Rating = * * *

Jamie Kelwick

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