Movie review: ‘Mr Peabody & Sherman’ entertains but offer little substance
Pulled from the animated adventures of Rocket J. Squirrel and Bullwinkle J. Moose Mr Peabody now lands on the big screen with the feature film Mr. Peabody & Sherman.
We find our titular characters, Mr. Peabody (Ty Burrell) and Sherman (Max Charles) as Sherman is about to start the school year after a series of amazing adventures through history with the talking dog. Peabody’s WABAC time machine proves to be just the temptation Sherman needs to impress a girl and defend his honor – of course, that’s when the adventure begins.
The biggest complement is Burrell’s voice for Peabody and a great ensemble cast of characters: Agamemnon (Patrick Warburton), Mel Brooks (Albert Einstein), Stanley Tucci (Leonardo da Vinci) and Allison Janney as the antagonist Ms Grunion.
While the film moves quickly with plenty of gags for kids and adults, the audience isn’t let with much to chew on. The oversimplified parenting tale has been better delivered in two Despicable Me films. Peabody’s inability to show affection and be loving because he’s smart is simply an inane and silly idea, one also perpetuated by The Big Bang Theory.
DreamWorks animation will need to work on more depth beyond fart jokes and softball gags for the adults (there’s a Bill Clinton joke which is very, very tired and somewhat out of place for a kid’s flick).
Overall: Mr Peabody & Sherman get 2 stars out of 5
Add a star for the kids who are at the target age for the show and will enjoy the silly humor.