Salt Lake Tribune Review
Somewhere, the animators from Spain who made this computer-animated muddle had some interesting ideas in -- a fond send-up of '50s monster movies, and maybe a subtle commentary about the dangers of xenophobia. But the story itself, about an arrogant American astronaut (voiced by Dwayne "Don't Call Me '
The Rock' " Johnson) landing on a planet whose green-skinned residents believe him to be a brain-eating monster, is weakly conceived and doesn't sustain a feature-length movie. The remaining voice cast (led by
Justin Long and
Jessica Biel) is dishwater-dull, with the only laughs coming from
John Cleese's paranoia-inducing scientist.
-- Sean P. Means
The rundown: An astronaut (voiced by
Dwayne Johnson) becomes the alien invader when he lands on a populated planet, in this lame send-up of monster movies. 91 minutes. (SPM)
Synopsis: American astronaut Captain Charles Chuck Baker, lands on Planet 51 thinking he's the first person to step foot on it. To his surprise, he finds that this planet is inhabited by little green people who are happily living in a white picket fence world reminiscent of a cheerfully innocent 1950s America, and whose only fear is that it will be overrun by alien invaders--like Chuck! With the help of his robot companion Rover and his new friend Lem, Chuck must navigate his way through the dazzling, but bewildering, landscape of Planet 51 in order to escape becoming a permanent part of the Planet 51 Alien Invaders Space Museum.
