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This summer, we ran the full gamut of heroes. We saw mutants and robots and wizards and Vulcans. And just when you were starting to wonder if filmmakers had finally exhausted their hero options for another year, Disney unleashed a whole new kind of hero—the talking guinea pig kind.
For years, Ben (Zach Galifianakis) has been training a team of creatures to perform special tasks for the government. But now the whole department is under evaluation, and he may lose his funding. To prove the team’s worth, he sends his trained guinea pigs to investigate a shady arms dealer turned appliance manufacturer who seems to be up to no good. Team leader Darwin (voiced by Sam Rockwell) even digs up some valuable information, linking billionaire Saber (Bill Nighy) to a plot that seems to end in global extermination. But something goes wrong, and the information is lost—as is their funding.
Before the FBI can capture the guinea pigs (and their tech guy, who just happens to be a mole), they manage to escape—only to find themselves trapped in a cage at a pet store with a neurotic hamster (Steve Buscemi), a farting guinea pig (Jon Favreau), and a bunch of brainless mice. The clock is ticking—and the members of G-Force have to break out and stop Saber before it’s too late.
Disney’s G-Force isn’t exactly an intellectually stimulating movie—nor does it have the class of a Pixar movie. It doesn’t teach viewers any valuable lessons, either. But, then again, you could say the same about Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen—yet millions upon millions of moviegoers have flocked to see it (repeatedly). Why? Because it’s brainless entertainment—and so is G-Force.
In a way, G-Force is a younger (and much, much simpler) version of Michael Bay’s Transformers—only with guinea pigs. And a few more fart jokes. And in 3-D. There’s plenty of action and adventure. There are sinister bad guys and high-speed chases and Earth-shattering explosions. There are even mechanical devices that transform into deadly robots.
And, of course, there are talking guinea pigs. They’re definitely not the typical action heroes, but they’re cute characters nonetheless—each with his or her own little guinea pig attitude, from spicy Latina Juarez (Penélope Cruz) to tough guy Blaster (Tracy Morgan). Their furry little antics keep things light and entertaining, and their dialogue is sprinkled with old action-movie quotes to keep grown-up viewers on their toes.
And did I mention that it’s all in 3-D? Unfortunately, they aren’t the most impressive 3-D graphics that we’ve seen this year. They’re gimmicky and relatively uninspired, but kids will enjoy the shattering glass and the constant comings and goings of Mooch, the G-Force fly. Still, it’s clear that G-Force was filmed with 3-D graphics in mind, so it’s worth shelling out a few extra bucks to see it as Disney intended.
Every summer, grown-ups get their brainless blockbusters like Transformers, so who am I to deny kids the silly secret agent action of G-Force? It’s Transformers, Junior. With rodents.
Blu-ray 3D Review:
Back in the days before every movie was released in 3D, Disney chose to go 3D for its guinea pig spy movie, G-Force. It isn’t the best movie that Disney’s produced—and the 3D probably wasn’t entirely necessary—but, as I noted when it first came out in theaters, kids will still love the gimmicky 3D graphics. And now that the film is available on Blu-ray 3D, kids can enjoy all of the 3D excitement that comes with the giant robots and electronic gadgets and (best of all) fly-vision in the comfort of their own living room.
As usual, the 3D disc doesn’t come with any extras, but the 3D combo pack also includes the Blu-ray and DVD versions of the film—complete with the extras covered below.
Blu-ray Review:
If your kids can’t get enough of the brainless guinea pig action of Disney’s G-Force, the three-disc Blu-ray/DVD/digital combo pack release offers plenty of short extras (and one really long one).
The Blu-ray disc features a number of the old standbys. There’s a super-short blooper reel (which is filled with Zach Galifianakis’s attempts to share his scenes with invisible guinea pigs), along with six deleted scenes (which are actually worth watching) and three music videos. Also included are four additional featurettes, covering everything from the imaginary gadgets used by the characters (in Blaster’s Boot Camp) to a behind-the-scenes look at the animation process (in Access Granted: Inside the Animation Lab). Kids will especially appreciate G-Force Mastermind, which reveals the real inspiration behind the movie: the director’s five-year-old son.
And, finally, instead of the usual director commentary, G-Force comes with Cine-Explore—a kind of super-commentary, which offers behind-the-scenes footage, commentary, and more. You can choose to watch it with or without the extra making-of videos, which break off from the movie to offer additional information. It’s quite a beast—and, with the additional videos, it adds a whole lot of time to the film’s runtime—so most kids will probably lose interest early on. But if you’re especially interested in computer animation and effects, you’ll want to give it a look—because it’s pretty interesting stuff.
While most kids probably won’t care enough to explore the more in-depth aspects of the G-Force Blu-ray release, though, there are still plenty of entertaining little extras. So, if you happen to be watching on a particularly rainy (or snowy) day, be sure to take some extra time to look around.
