Film Review - Scooby Doo (From Western Telegraph)

Film Review - Scooby Doo

Directed by Raja Gosnell. Starring Matthew Lillard, Freddie Prinze Jr, Sarah Michelle Gellar , Linda Cardellini. Dur. 93 mins Cert. 12

Has the world gone completely mad? Im talking chiefly about the film world. I rather think it has, and anyone who goes to see this weeks big release will probably agree with me.

When I was a kid there was a cartoon called Scooby Doo. It was Saturday morning, or after school, nonsense. As a toddler I liked it Im sure, but once I got to an age where I was capable of opinions, its appeal soon waned. The reason was that Scooby Doo had, among over 300 episodes, only one plot, and here it is: The four cartoon humans and the title character of Scooby Doo, a large dog of some description, travel around in psychedelic van as a ghost investigation team called Mystery Inc. At the haunted house theyd be split up, trying to find the ghost.

Scooby and his human mate, the silliest of the humans called Shaggy, would wander off looking for food. The ghost would chase them before they managed to remove the disguise and Fred, the cool one, would explain that the ghost was in fact Mr. Somebody the whole time.

Even at a very tender age I started to see the climatic reveal coming a mile off and started to wonder instead if Fred and the good-looking Daphne were an item, or was Scooby toilet trained, who who paid them? Why Warner Brothers studios have decided to turn this cartoon in to a big movie I have absolutely no idea.

Well, youll have seen the tennis courts of Wimbledon covered over to protect them for the harsh weather, so youll know that its summer and so if the kids arent out of school already, looking for a cinema to shelter in, they soon will be. I assume that Warner Bros have calculated that enough kids will want to see this movie to make it worthy blockbuster material.

What puzzles me is that its a 12 certificate and yet I would have thought a 12-year-old would find Scooby Doo even more lame than I do at 27. Anyway let me introduce the Mystery Inc gang, 2002, 3-D version. Freddie Prinze Jr is Fred, whose character has been slightly broadened for the big screen to make him an egotist. Sarah Michelle Gellar is Daphne, also tweaked into a sexier kung-fu queen. Then theres Linda Cardellini who plays the intelligent one stifled by her school library geek image. Lastly theres the clownish duo we all tuned in to see.

Matthew Lillard plays Shaggy brilliantly. Hes a hippie with a few great comic lines and loads of delinquent goofing around beside Scooby. His drug interests are only thinly veiled, whether thats acceptable or not is for parents to decide.

Finally theres Scooby. Now close your eyes if you dont want the film ruined for you, because I have to tell you that SCOOBY ISNT REAL! Its not hard to tell, but ultimately its not his dodgy, doggy CGI animation thats at fault in this ridiculous kids' movie, but the way the images dont quite seem to match up with Scoobys voice.

In the film they investigate the mystery of Spooky Island at the request of the strange theme parks owner Mondavarius, played by Rowan Atkinson no less.

Indeed its Atkinsons performance, alongside a few moments from the Shaggy and Scooby double act, which gives the film anything worth commending. It would be great to see Atkinson in more films.

All in all Scooby-Doo is pretty bad. It makes Charlies Angels look like Citizen Kane. If the kids do stay away then the director Raja Gosnell, will be using one of the Scooby-Doo stories best used phrases - I would have got away with it if hadnt been for you kids! VAUGHAN SIVELL