"G-Force" Movie Review

http://www.mannythemovieguy.com We know its just a matter of time before Hollywood makes a film featuring talking guinea pigs. In G-Force, not only do these furry creatures have the gift of gab, they can also kick major booty. Uber-producer Jerry Bruckheimer, the guy who gave us the Pirates of the Caribbean and National Treasure franchises, released his first live-action/animated/3-D hybrid. The result is an entertaining picture for kids that grown-ups will enjoy because of the 3-D technology. Originally intended to be released in 2-D, Bruckheimer and company decided to create a 3-D version of G-Force using Disney Digital 3-D. Every shot is painstakingly transformed into the glorious three-dimensional look. G-Force is the directing debut of Hoyt Yeatman. He previously won an Oscar for the visual effects work he did for The Abyss. I suspect that Yeatman was hired for his visual wizardry and not for his directorial skills. On the visual level, G-Force succeeded. The genesis of the film is quite intriguing. Yeatmans 5-year-old son came up with the movies idea after bringing home the class guinea pig from preschool and started talking about guinea pigs as soldiers, wearing uniforms and little army helmets. The elder Yeatman decided to make the rodents secret agents, and Bruckheimer signed on to produce. G-Force tells the story of 3 guinea pigs, a star-nosed mole, and a fly. Theyre part of a covert government program that train animals to work in espionage. The guinea pigs secret agents are Darwin (voiced by Sam Rockwell) the squad leader; Blaster (voiced by Tracy Morgan), the weapons expert; and Juarez (voiced by Penelope Cruz), the sexy martial arts pro. Nicolas Cage came up with a unique voice to breathe life into the star-nosed mole character named Speckles, the computer and information specialist. Helping the team is the literal fly-on-the-wall reconnaissance expert, Mooch. Fresh from the success of The Hangover, Zach Galifianakis is underused as the G-Forces creator and father figure. Dont expect to see him in his wacky mode he perfected in The Hangover. Another actor whos underused is the great character actor, Bill Nighy. He stars as Leonard Saber, G-Forces nemesis. Trouble begins for our heroes when the government puts the brakes on their mission. Now, three guinea pigs, a mole, and a fly are left alone to battle their mysterious enemy. Who is Saber working for, and how are they planning their world domination? Stealing the show is character actor Steve Buscemi who provided the voice of the rabidly territorial pet shop hamster Bucky. Keeping Bucky company is Hurley, a fat and happy guinea pig voiced by Iron Man director Jon Favreau. Bruckheimer enlisted topnotch actors to give credence to G-Force but I wish he paid more attention to the script. Youll wonder why the film needed 5 scriptwriters to write a movie that is a tad better than a predictable Saturday morning cartoon. But kids, especially young boys,