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Years ago, the land of Malaria was a happy place. But then the clouds came. They covered the whole kingdom, and they just never went away. Now, Malaria is a land of evil scientists who make a living by threatening worldwide destruction with their evil inventions.
While he’s preparing for this year’s Evil Science Fair, incompetent Dr. Glickenstein (voiced by John Cleese) meets an untimely end. Less than eager to look for a new job, Dr. Glickenstein’s Igor (John Cusack) decides that it’s his chance to prove his own scientific genius. With some help from two friends of his own creation—Scamper (Steve Buscemi), an immortal (and, sadly, suicidal) rabbit, and less-than-brainy Brain (Sean Hayes)—Igor manages to do the impossible: he creates life. The only problem is that his monster isn’t very evil. On the contrary, she’s quite sweet.
With just days to go before the fair, Igor and his friends set out to train their creation, Eva (Molly Shannon), to be evil. At the same time, they have to protect her from invention-stealing Dr. Schadenfreude (Eddie Izzard), who will stop at nothing to win the fair and take control of Malaria.
With its dark subject matter and intentionally clay-like animation, Igor admittedly looks and feels an awful lot like a Tim Burton knockoff. But its clever story, its entertaining characters, and its talented (and surprisingly large) voice cast make up its lack of visual originality.
Igor is darkly, morbidly funny—and the characters (especially the minor ones) are hilarious. Sure, Igor is the usual lovable underdog (despite the fact that he tries really hard to be evil), and Dr. Schadenfreude is a pretty typical villain. But unconventional characters like Eva, the sweet and thoughtful monster who thinks she’s an actress, and Scamper, the suicidal rabbit, add just the right amount of wackiness to the story.
That said, though, while the film’s overall message (“I’d rather be a good nobody than an evil somebody”) may seem like a good one for kids, Igor isn’t really a good kids’ movie. The dark humor and violence might be a bit excessive for younger viewers. The story’s sometimes rather scary—and kids might not get the twisted humor of a bunny with suicidal tendencies.
For grown-up viewers with a twisted sense of humor, however, this creepy-but-cute animated film is a dark and demented little treat. With its laughably sinister characters and its quirky, retro soundtrack, it’s certainly a bizarre film—but that just makes it all the more fun. It might not have the brilliance or the stunning animation of the usual Disney/Pixar Oscar winners, but it’s still well worth checking out.
DVD Review:
Since you probably missed this quirky animated film when it came out in theaters, be sure to pick up a copy on DVD. While you’re at it, feel free to browse through the extras, too. Just don’t expect a whole lot.
The DVD’s special features include an alternate opening scene, a gallery of various concept art, and a more-entertaining-than-average audio commentary featuring director Anthony Leondis, writer Chris McKenna, and producer Max Howard. If you’re interested in behind-the-scenes stuff, they’re all worth a few minutes of your time—but they’re not essential.
