Vibrant Characters Send Over The Hedge Over The Top

     One might wonder why so many big-name celebrities agree to lend their voices to cartoon creatures in animated feature films. The answer is quite obvious in Dreamworks’s Over The Hedge, which features Bruce Willis as the voice of a raccoon and Garry Shandling as a voice of a turtle. The computer-animated motion picture offers the actors a rare opportunity to take part in a project that they can share with their entire families. Over The Hedge is fun and exciting enough to engage even the youngest moviegoers while still presenting a witty (oftentimes satirical) front for older audiences.

     The characters are perhaps the elements of the film that pull the two sets together, though. The animators created the various furry critters in the movie in ways that furnish their individual personalities, distinguishing one from the other as well as those from other animated flicks, while never abandoning their real-life counterparts. In other words, they are as real as they are adorable. They are the ideal marketing tools – characters that can appear in successful advertising campaigns and still be every child’s (and in some cases adult’s) coveted plush toy.

     As I’ve said, Willis lends his voice to the lead character in Over The Hedge, a raccoon named R.J.. During the opening scenes of the film, R.J. tries to lift a stash of food from a hibernating bear’s cave. The bear, named Vincent and voiced by Nick Nolte, catches R.J. in the act and when the food is accidentally demolished, Vincent threatens to eat R.J.. However, R.J. makes a deal with Vincent that he will replace all of the food within one week’s time in exchange for his life.

     Meanwhile, a group of woodland critters including a turtle named Verne (Shandling), a skunk named Stella (Wanda Sykes) and a squirrel named Hammy (Steve Carell) awaken from their winter nap to stock up on rations for their next hibernation. When they find that suburbia has been built over their forest (and the only thing separating them from the humans’ houses is – get this – a hedge), R.J. takes advantage of the situation to remedy his own predicament. R.J. convinces the critters to travel over the hedge (ah, there it is) and onto the humans’ terrain to steal their food. Despite Verne’s warnings of danger, they go along with R.J.’s plan… which ultimately lands them in a heap of junk food, er, trouble.

     The undemanding plot of Over The Hedge, which is based on Michael Fry and T. Lewis’s comic strip of the same name, lends itself to younger viewers, which is a drawback in terms of universal appeal. More mature moviegoers are likely to discount the flick as a result of its relatively simple story. Therefore, it is vital that the writers of Over The Hedge incorporate humor and thrills for viewers of all ages. They succeed, or even excel for that matter, since the motion picture frequently generates laughter and exhilaration from its audience.

     More importantly, the movie taps into the moral values of family and friendship with the dynamic relationship between R.J. and Verne. Much like the computer-generated buddies that came before them – Woody and Buzz, Shrek and Donkey, Mike and Sully – R.J. and Verne are a pair that is bound to stand out in cinematic history. Of course, Over The Hedge gets that little extra boost since it is populated with vibrant minor characters like Ozzie the possum (William Shatner), Dwayne the exterminator (Thomas Haden Church) and Gladys the president of the homeowner’s association (Allison Janney).

     There is a wide array of computer animated family flicks set for release later this year so it is very important that each one offers something memorable in order to be considered triumphant. Over The Hedge offers characters that are guaranteed to touch the heart and tickle the funny bone of moviegoers of all ages. It also offers comedy and action suitable for all demographics. But above all, it offers a reason for all family members to get together and go to the movies.