Over the Hedge Review

Over the Hedge is DreamWorks' first really good post-Shrek CGI film, mainly because it has a solid concept that continues the tradition the film company started with their initial animated features The Prince of Egypt and Road to El Dorado and that tradition is "Don't be like Disney!"

While the Wal-Mart ads and Burger King toys may say otherwise, Over the Hedge is a clever indictment of consumerism that manages to skillfully lampoon all aspects of modern living while keeping the humor fast-paced and kid-friendly, something even Shrek fell short of sometimes. Like its predecessor, the somewhat forgettable Madagascar, the film gets its message across in less than one hour and twenty minutes, saying what it needs to say and entertaining non-stop with no flak whatsoever, not even a subplot! In the case of Over the Hedge, that's a good thing.

If you are unaware of the film's rapid-fire storyline, I'll fill you in. A mischievous raccoon has inadvertently destroyed a hibernating bear's snack food supply. He's got a week to replenish the stash or the bear will be having him for dinner instead. The solution? Befriend a bunch of simple-minded woodland creatures, show them the bountiful feast that is suburban garbage, and get them to steal the snacks!

Like Shrek (and every CGI DreamWorks film that followed it), Over the Hedge relies heavily on celebrity voices, only this time the casting decisions feel truly inspired, from Steve Carell's turn as the hyperactive squirrel Hammy (pictured above), to Garry Shandling's neurotic turtle Verne. SCTV alumni Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara voice a pair of "Minnesota Nice" porcupines, while William Shatner and Avril Lavigne play a father-daughter pair of possums. It doesn't stop there, as the cast list also includes Wanda Sykes, Thomas Haden Church, and Nick Nolte. Even Bruce Willis turns in an excellent performance as the raccoon RJ, despite his replacement status on the film (Jim Carrey was the filmmakers' first choice).

The film fully embraces the cartoonish potential of CGI, and at no point tries to go for realism like the recent Disney flop The Wild. I agree with the Charlotte Observer that the film conjures up the spirit of Chuck Jones, especially in a truly madcap sequence involving a wagonload of snacks, a garden hose, and a lit can of propane. What happens I will leave for you to discover, but the stunt reaches levels previously attained only by Wile E. Coyote.

The film was co-directed by Tim Johnson, the director of DreamWorks' first foray into CGI, Antz, and Karey Kirkpatrick, who makes his directorial debut after being given the thankless task of finishing the screenplay to last year's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, after Douglas Adams' unfortunate passing. He did, however, write the script for The Rescuers Down Under, so props for that!

Finally, the film's most surprising facet comes in the form of a handful of wonderful original songs by Ben Folds, one of my favorite musicians and an untapped resource as far as movie soundtracks are concerned. He's an artist that truly cares about the quality of his music, whether it be a selection from a fans-only EP or a track off the Godzilla soundtrack. There's no such thing as a "throwaway song" when it comes to Folds. Case in point is Over the Hedge's opening song "Family of Me," which lasts all of one-and-a-half minutes, but could arguably be one of Folds' catchiest melodies.


The film won't be winning an Oscar for Best Animated Feature anytime soon, but it is a welcome effort from a studio that has been standing in the shadow of Mike Myers' churlish ogre for a little too long.