The visual wizardry of the animation will keep most viewers from noticing that the plotline itself is flat. It took two buckets of popcorn before the kids actually entered the house, which kicked-off a brief spell of adventure. Then it was back to the front yard for more drama that we've already seen. Then--abruptly--the children befriend a foe, and the movie closes with a noisy brawl between good and evil. Woven in all of that is the story of odd-ball friends growing up. Given that it's a sentimental theme, people will like it regardless of how well it's told.
It's a given that 3-D animation was cool, so I won't talk about that. But it is worth pointing out that it was visually taxing to watch animated humans. There were many scenes that were so awkward that I wondered if real actors could've made it a better story.
I think the creators of the movie knew this, which explains why they gave so much attention to the house itself. They could not have imagined a bigger and badder villain.
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Pro-social Content
It was amusing to watch two boys on the edge of puberty bumble over the smart and cute neighborhood girl. Younger viewers will admire the courage of the pre-teen heros that face their fears by accepting great challenges. If you wanted to dig for another moral of the story, you might learn to not judge people, like kooky neighbors.
Summary
The relentlessly dark overtone keeps the movie from being outright fun, which is what most ticket holders will be looking for. I waited for the movie to become more light-hearted, but it never did. Maybe I didn't expect Monster House really was about a monster house. If you want a movie about young friends facing big time adventure, watch The Goonies or The Sandlot. But if you want to be frightened without seeing blood, this might worth a rent.
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