User Score
6.6 out of 10

Generally favorable reviews- based on 124 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 90 out of 124
  2. Negative: 16 out of 124

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  1. Feb 15, 2011
    6
    This movie is good for kids, but adults will be bored, the plot isn't all that great and the characters are ok, but there perfectly good for a kids movie, all in all I would recommend this for a rental, but don't expect much of a reason to watch it again.
  2. Oct 9, 2011
    5
    Occasionally funny at times, but ultimately "Monsters vs. Aliens" is your average road-to-hero Dream works animation movie.
  3. GavinC.
    Oct 11, 2009
    5
    Although occasionally coming up with a spark of enjoyment, M vs A's plot is bland and the laughs it inspires are almost always forced.
  4. anonymous
    May 31, 2009
    3
    A complete mediocre film, if there is a power outage and your TV goes blank, don't worry the plot only gets worse. Characters are forgettable if not just plain stupid. Predicable in every way. Show it to 5-12 year olds, other then that don't waste your time, see a Pixar film, with REAL character development.
  5. Feb 12, 2012
    7
    Not nearly as funny as it should be, but it is fantastically visually crafted and it is fun and action packed. So Monsters vs Aliens is an entertaining film to look at. I give this movie 74%.
  6. WHOKNEW
    Mar 27, 2009
    3
    Saw it this morning with my teenage niece and adult sister. Both my sister and I walked out feeling something was missing. Like the fun and cleverness from, say, something with so much less potential...like Bolt, or Meet the Robinsons. This movie is much more in the Madagascar league than in the far superior Pixar pics. I think focusing the whole thing on Susan, the giant woman a.k.a. Ginormica, was a mistake. To begin with, her character is about as engaging as a bad Reese Whitherspoon movie, which is saying a lot more than it deserves. It just should have been so much more fun, but it felt like a waste of money. Oh, and I totally agree with critics who feel the 3D was completely unnecessary. It didn't add anything to the film. Watch it on 2D and save your money, if you must. Expand
  7. KeithC
    Mar 27, 2009
    8
    The humor was good and topical (a lot of sci-fi based jokes), good animation, an interesting story line and music that was space based (B52s Planet Claire, One Eyed Purple People Eater, Axle F). The group of people I saw it with are going back to see it in 3D. MUCH better than most people are giving it as a review. WORTH the ticket price.
  8. AndrewR
    Mar 27, 2009
    7
    It was fine not great but not bad either. Good for kids.
  9. chrisr
    Mar 28, 2009
    10
    This movie was very fun, entertaining and funny. They didn't go over the top with the 3-D which was really nice to see. Great movie!
  10. blahblah
    Mar 28, 2009
    8
    It's not Wall-E, but it's a fairly good movie. Some parts were hilarious. I enjoyed the references to other movies. If you're going to see a movie, this wouldn't be a bad choice.
  11. MichaelK.
    Mar 28, 2009
    5
    Tiresome display of elementary knowledge of old SF movies, with a script which doesn't make sense. I saw it in 2-D. According to some reviewers, it looks better in 2-D than 3-D.
  12. kgm.
    Mar 28, 2009
    3
    I saw this in regular 2-dimension, maybe it plays better in 3-D. it
  13. ChadS.
    Mar 28, 2009
    6
    "So how's the weather up there?" Thanks to a little divine intervention, Susan(Reese Witherspoon) knows. There's no need for the exponentially growing bride to ask her weatherman fiance anymore. "Girl power" takes the form of extreme gigantism in "Monsters vs. Aliens", an animated sci-fi actioneer that seems largely unaware about the fundamental problem of its basic premise. While the unwieldy spurt in growth at the outset helps Susan redefine herself as an independent-minded woman, who is too big for Derek(Paul Rudd), and too big for Fresno(as the film states, only the fifty-fith largest news market in America), the accidental superhero's colossalism will ultimately handicap the jilted bride in the long run. After losing her quantonium during the alien invasion, fighting on the monsters' side, she declares, "I don't want my old life back," and recovers her quantonium, and most likely, her self-esteem. The film's message of female empowerment gets lost in semantics since Susan battles Gallaxhar(Rainn Wilson) as a monster, as Ginormica, instead of as a mere woman. Susan's mutant friends, previously scorned by the human sector for their otherness, enact a change in the connotation behind the term "monster", when they're hailed as conquering heroes for turning back the plot against earth. But at the end of the day, no matter how you slice it, Susan is still the "other", not a woman, an evolved woman, a monster. She's something that men fear, not respect. Derek should respect Susan. Expand
  14. JamesM
    Mar 29, 2009
    9
    This movie was a great movie for the whole family the best characters I liked were Bob, and Link.
  15. TDKinDallas
    Mar 29, 2009
    7
    Surprisingly good. It could have been a lot better, but it was a lot better than I was expecting. 3D effects were amazing and I am not sure, but I thing the adults in the audience enjoyed it more than the kids. Definitely see it in 3D if you are not sure whether you want to pay the extra few bucks.
  16. AdriT
    Mar 29, 2009
    7
    Fun movie for the family, a few nods to the adults with various references of older movies. I'm not sure though if paying extra for the 3D was worth it. Not enough of it in my opinion.
  17. NickS
    Mar 30, 2009
    9
    Saw the advance screening of this on Saturday and loved it! Me and my friends were laughing the whole way through, defenitly one of the best animated films in a while. Sure, the 3D did'nt add that much, but it was the great lines (especially BOB's) that made the movie for me.
  18. MattL
    Mar 30, 2009
    10
    I honestly can't believe the mixed reviews Monsters vs. Aliens is getting. I saw the 2-D version, so I can't speak to the 3-D aspects, but the 2-D version was excellent in every sense of the word: great story, characters, animation, voice work, and everything else. It was a joy to watch -and I'm 23 (and fancy myself a movie snob). My only gripe is that it should've been called Monsters vs. an Alien and Robots and Clones...ok, maybe not that. But still, go see this movie, with or without kids. Expand
  19. Jacob
    Mar 30, 2009
    10
    This movie was extremely entertaining. I loved all of the references to old sci-fi and laughed obnoxiously the whole way through.
  20. LouisM
    Mar 31, 2009
    10
    It is important to say that the film is not all original (Story, jokes...). But it's still a lot of pleasure to watch. I laughed the whole way through. The president was god damn funny, and so was pretty much all the secondary characters. Textures are really detailed, although I don't like the human characters appearance (Kinda reminds me of some manga), the modeling was well made. Anyhow... I'm giving this movie a 10 because it deserves more then the two numbers that are written at the top of this page. Expand
  21. HyperS
    Apr 2, 2009
    7
    No really spontaneous laugh out loud moments for me... a lot of the jokes were pretty amateurish and some carried on way too long (i.e. Screaming every time a monster is introduced or the jokes involving BOB's short-term memory), but I did smile a few times in the "monster wreaks havoc scenes" at the Golden Gate Bridge and the city destruction scene and with regards to the Alien Robot/Aliens. Its a well animated film and fairly quick paced... has its moments so worth a watch. Expand
  22. lucas
    Apr 3, 2009
    5
    It's like a Pixar feature, witout the clever writing, memorable characters, skillful action sequences, memorable voice talent, or the sense of awe.
  23. ColinC
    Apr 5, 2009
    7
    Really more of a 6.5. Should have waited for the dvd, but oh well. Pixar it ain't. Story was okay, but a lot of the jokes fell flat. And I never really find myself caring that much about the characters. I saw it in the theatre because I wanted to see it in 3D, but even that was disappointing. I was expecting things to be jumping out at me more, you know, but the 3D effect was primarily giving depth to the image, like looking through a window. Not bad, but honestly, after five minutes, you don't really see it any more and there's only the story left to move you forward. In this case, while not terrible, definitely not worth the trip (and money) to go to the theatre. I might try the 3D thing again, but only if it's a move I really, really want to see. Expand
  24. DanL
    Apr 6, 2009
    2
    Dazzling to look at although marred slightly by the always inferior to Pixar animation that Dreamworks constantly churns out. Okay now we're done with the positives lets move on to why this is one of the worst films I've sat through in a while. If you're expecting anything close to, for example, The Incredibles or Toy Story in terms of plot, characters, script, humor, charm, originality etc. etc. be prepared to be disappointed, it fails miserably on all counts. The gags are wince inducingly weak and missed the mark time and again. The characters are flat, stereotypical and forgettable, particularly the villain of the film. The "plot" was so mind-numbingly cliched and predictable that I was fighting the urge to walk out of the cinema the whole time, something I've only done twice before in my life. This film will appeal to kids I'm sure but anyone over the age of 11 should avoid like the Bubonic plague. Expand
  25. HectorA
    Apr 8, 2009
    6
    We saw it in 2-D. My young daughter liked it, and my friend liked it, and I thought the cinematics were great, but many of the jokes and punchlines were cliche, flat or predictable. This is a movie I enjoyed taking my daughter to, and I did enjoy the visuals, but I wouldn't care to sit through this movie again.
  26. EssiS.
    Apr 9, 2009
    4
    3D was awesome and the I liked the voice cast, but the script wasn't very good and it was a little bit boring. No point in seeing this anywhere else than in 3D cinemas.
  27. Anonymous
    Apr 9, 2009
    2
    One of the worst movies I've ever seen. I wasted my time and money by taking some younger kids to this movie. They didn't enjoy it either. Horrible one-way plot, really crappy jokes and poor character development. Disgusts me.
  28. NathanG
    Apr 11, 2009
    8
    I really liked it (I didn't see the 3D version, just to note). I enjoyed the jokes a lot, and I thought Rogan did a great job as the blob. Colbert was an awesome president as well. It isn't an epic adventure (like WALL-E), nor is it a benchmark in storytelling or animated movies (like Shrek), but it is quite entertaining, so if you enjoy these types of film, I'd recommend seeing it. Expand
  29. BillP
    Apr 12, 2009
    8
    Hey! I was entertained. I enjoyed the references to the old horror movies and monster movies of the 50s. I saw it in 2D and was impressed by the details in the animation. Susan's skin texture almost had a photographic quality. Animation has come a long way in the last two decades. Go see this movie and escape for awhile. Enjoy a few chuckles. It is definitely worth your time and money.
  30. PeterPan
    Apr 12, 2009
    9
    Just came back from the cinema and watched this movie with my son in 3D. How much fun was this ... Great movie, very funny at times and the 3D system is nicely implemented. Would definitely recommend watching it.
Metascore

Mixed or average reviews - based on 35 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 35
  2. Negative: 3 out of 35
  1. There is a nice mix of action with tender moments -- especially among the misfit monsters
  2. Reviewed by: Todd McCarthy
    70
    A film of chuckles, smiles and light amusement rather than big laughs, galvanizing excitement and original invention.
  3. Reviewed by: Robert Wilonsky
    80
    The grandeur of the effects--the honest-to-God spectacle of the thing--elevates Monsters vs. Aliens to something approaching art. It's not a masterpiece, but it's most certainly a milestone.