Scooby Doo

Whenever there is a spooky ghost around, who are you going to call? Ghostbusters! But not in this movie. Instead we have 4 groovy kids and a talking dog that make up Mystery Inc. This well known group consists of Freddy (Freddie Prinze Jr.), the team's powerhouse, Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar), the damselle in distress, Velma (Linda Cardellini), the brains, Shaggy (Matthew Lillard), the always hungry bottomless pit, and Scooby-Doo, our favorite lovable CGI animated canine. After a falling out that splits up the team, they reunite years later to take on their most dangerous case yet, Spooky Island. The team is invited to this mysterious college gateway to investigate a strange phenomenon that is turning it's visitors into mindless zombies. The laughs and cheers soon turn to screams and cries when a couple of demons show up at the island. Things don't look too good for anyone, especially the kids that our already possessed by the demons. Lucky for them, Mystery Inc is on the case.

This movie is a dream come true for the fans of the Scooby-Doo cartoon series. It was exciting to see one of my favorite cartoons as a kid as a live action movie on the big screen. This movie is just a part of the Scooby Doo cult that has been emerging over the years. Even before this movie came out, it was easy to find Scooby-Doo memorabilia on toys, shows, dishes, T-shirts, video games, floor mats, coloring books, music CDs, etc. What makes Scooby-Doo so popular even among today's generations? I think it's how the stories are constructed and how our heroes react to their situations. For example, both Scooby-Doo and Shaggy always run in fear when a scary monster appears and they also gorge in food whenever they have a chance. I think that this mixture of mystery and comedy give the audience a sense of adventure and fun at the same time.

While some people are going to enjoy this movie, some people aren't going to like it. Personally, I didn't like the way how Freddy and Daphne were cast and the actors that played them. Freddy is masculine but not macho, intelligent not egocentric, and more of a leader than having to rely on Velma. Daphne is beautiful but not vain, agile not high flying, and interested in the clues more so than entertaining the rest of the group. In all honesty though, Scooby and Shaggy were the stars of the show and Velma solved the crime. Freddy and Daphne were the background characters of the group that kept the case realistic, help trap the bad guy, and operate any mechanics, including driving the Mystery Machine. I can understand that Freddy and Daphne personalities were shifted to make the movie more interesting, but being a Scooby fan myself, I personally did not like the change.

Even though this movie didn't really stick to the cartoon series, I did enjoy it. It was a good as a live action Scooby Doo movie could get. There is even an appearance of Scrappy Doo himself. Both kids and adults will enjoy this little gem. It was nice to see a movie with this much history and fans going to go see it. The only thing that would have made this movie perfect would be to have a box of Scooby Snacks to munch during the movie.

Review written by dxjason

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