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Reviews Counted:97
Fresh:22
Rotten:75
Average Rating:4.1/10
Consensus: Planet 51 squanders an interesting premise with an overly familiar storyline, stock characters, and humor that alternates between curious and potentially offensive.
Genre: Childrens
US Box Office: $41,258,445
Synopsis: The tables are turned in this animated sci-fi adventure featuring the voices of Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Seann William Scott, Gary Oldman, and John Cleese. In PLANET 51, an... [More]
Starring: Dwayne Johnson, Jessica Biel, Justin Long, Seann William Scott
Director: Jorge Blanco
Just how much of this will be appreciated by children is questionable, but the film is clearly intended to keep them happy with lashings of colour, movement and cheesy jokes while older, diehard geeks can enjoy all the reference spotting.
Top CriticFunny and well designed, but doesn't live up to potential due to uninspired dialogue and heavy hand of marketing.
Top CriticThe screenplay aims wide for every snappy, pop-culture joke that can possibly be cracked. But the viewer’s funnybone remains an elusive target.
Top CriticLittle kids who've never seen this story before might get a kick out of it and its bold colours. Parents will be yawning and looking at their watches. At least G-Force dared you to hate it; this just dares you to stay awake.
Top CriticMuch of the detail will go above the heads of its young audience, but adults will enjoy the clever touches, like the Alien Hotline, the upcoming anticipated release of the movie Humanian 3 and the rock-collecting probe called Rover
Top CriticA short-sighted assembly of sci-fi references and scatalogical humor that should nonetheless placate undemanding tots ... for ninety minutes or so.
Nothing really gels and Planet 51 just comes across as shrill, rushed and unfunny.
While certainly diverting, its overly frantic attempts at humour, pointless homages to other films and lack of charm mean it falls some way short. It’s not terrible but neither is it memorable.
Top CriticA charming spoof of cold-war alien paranoia, this is visually inventive and full of action, but could do with more humour.
A thin joke becomes attenuated to breaking point.
Well and truly aimed at kids, Planet 51 is a film they will thoroughly enjoy yet which any accompanying adult will have lots of laughs in too.
Top CriticGlar and his friends are more or less all-purpose protestors, showing up on sidewalks with placards announcing, "We're really upset!" over nothing specific. And that makes them about as amiable and as bland as everyone else on Planet 51.
There’s enough of a storyline here to keep younger space cadets moderately settled.
A hideously annoying and emotionally blank tale.
Top CriticIt could have added up to something. Alas, any excitement is submerged by the relentless barrage of trite sci-fi allusions and nudge-nudge gags aimed solely at adults.
The action pans out pretty predictably but such is the verve of the story and the impressive visuals you may find yourself heading off course to catch Planet 51.
A jumble of kiddie slapstick and pointless chases.
The laughs come thick and fast in a sprightly kid pleaser full of slapstick set-pieces and memorable characters, while more grown-up viewers will find themselves grinning at pastiches of the Cold War paranoia of bygone sci-fi movies.
An extremely dull and unfunny comedy with pop-culture references where the gags should be, and humdrum voicings.
While pretty much a cut-and-shut of every animated movie of the past decade, this sci-fi comedy should achieve blast-off with the under-10s. For adults, however, this is as solidly so what? as you can get.
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full trailer and preview at Movies for the Masses 
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