Posted by Chris on March 02 2010 16:20:26
At times
we'll review non-Batman related products, and Scooby Doo: Abracadabra-Doo is one of those that we were more than pleased to review. Now I've always been a fan of Scooby-Doo going back to the originals when I was a kid. This latest direct to video movie is one of the better efforts.It's a great story. The Scooby gang comes to the aid of Velma's sister at her magic school, with a bit of a Harry Potter vibe. They are being terrorized by a giant Griffin which is one of the better monsters they have faced for some time. There is lot of good action and creepy locations in the manner of the best Scooby-Doo. There are some good humorous moments too, without stooping to the ridiculous sight gags and role playing bits from the earlier shows. Except for musical interludes, this movie plays the mystery pretty straight.
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Extended News
At times
we'll review non-Batman related products, and Scooby Doo: Abracadabra-Doo is one of those that we were more than pleased to review. Now I've always been a fan of Scooby-Doo going back to the originals when I was a kid. This latest direct to video movie is one of the better efforts.It's a great story. The Scooby gang comes to the aid of Velma's sister at her magic school, with a bit of a Harry Potter vibe. They are being terrorized by a giant Griffin which is one of the better monsters they have faced for some time. There is lot of good action and creepy locations in the manner of the best Scooby-Doo. There are some good humorous moments too, without stooping to the ridiculous sight gags and role playing bits from the earlier shows. Except for musical interludes, this movie plays the mystery pretty straight.
I like the interpersonal action going on in this movie. Fred and Daphne at first are close and clingy until Fred sets eyes on the magician's assistant. Daphne, now jealous, tries a bit of ballet to try to improve her grace and not be the "danger prone" one. Velma's sister has a crush on Shaggy who actually responds to her if in a limited way.
Matthew Lillard, who played Shaggy in the two live action movies takes over for Casey Kasem as the voice of Shaggy. Though Kasem IS Shaggy, in the last few movies, his age came through in his voice work, making teen-age Shaggy sound kinda like grandpa. Lillard does a fine job here and would be a worthy successor to Kasem.
I'm a bit conflicted by the new animators. At times I thought it was great, while at times it looked to be too stylized. The Scooby gang seemed a bit too much of a representation of the characters instead of the kids we're familiar with. Unlike another reviewer, I preferred the "What's New'" animation to the earlier movies like the "Witches Ghost" era. While it was great animation, the core characters seemed to be changed too much. The later ones like "Loch Ness" while cartoony, seemed more like the originals. Just my opinion.
On one final note, keep the mysteries real. Keep away from the supernatural as much as possible. My favorite thing about Scooby-Doo is that it's always a man in a mask. If kids see that what they think is real might be something else underneath, they may just develop a bit of healthy skepticism.