Scooby-Doo! and the Monster of Mexico (2003) (V)

User Rating:

5.5/10   

Director:

Scott Jeralds

Writer:

Douglas Wood (writer)

Release Date:

30 September 2003 (USA)

Genre:

Animation | Comedy | Family | Mystery

Plot Keywords:

Great Dane | Dog Cartoon | Place Name In Title | Exclamation Point In Title | Scooby Doo

US TV Schedule:

Mon. July 27

11:00 AM

TOON

Cast

Casey Kasem	...	Shaggy (voice)
Frank Welker	...	Fred / Scooby-Doo (voice)
Nicole Jaffe	...	Velma (voice)
Heather North	...	Daphne (voice) (as Heather North Kenny)
Jesse Borrego	...	Luis Otero / Musician #2 / Suspicious Tourist (voice)
Maria Canals-Barrera	...	Sofia Otero / Old Woman #2 (voice) (as Maria Canals)
Brandon Gonzalez	...	Jorge Otero (voice)
Castulo Guerra	...	Señor Fuente / Man #1 (voice)
Benito Martinez	...	El Curandero / Man #2 (voice)
Darlene Mendoza	...	Natalia Otero / Little Girl (voice)
Candi Milo	...	Charlene Otero / Museum Guide / Old Woman #1 (voice)
Rita Moreno	...	Doña Dolores / Woman #3 (voice)
Allyse Rivera	...	Carolina Otero (voice)
Casey Sandino	...	Sebastian Otero / Little Boy (voice)
Eddie Santiago	...	Alejo Otero / Musician #1 (voice)

Runtime:

USA:75 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Australia:G | Finland:K-7 | UK:U

Company:

Warner Bros. Animation

Trivia:

The site www.ancientmexicanwisdom.com is a real site owned by Warner Brothers.

Quotes:

Daphne Blake: Okay, Fred, how do you say "hopelessly lost" in Spanish?
Velma Dinkley: It looks like the woods get thicker up ahead.
Daphne Blake: Do you suppose we'll meet any wild animals?
Fred 'Freddy' Jones: We might.
Velma Dinkley: Mostly coyotes and jaguars and boars.
Daphne Blake: Coyotes?
Fred 'Freddy' Jones: And jaguars?
Velma Dinkley: And boars.
Daphne Blake: Oh, my!

Movie Connections:

Spoofs The Wizard of Oz (1939)

Very, very weak

Back again in the brand new slicker animation form, the Mystery Inc gang head down to Mexico to visit Fred's e-mail pal but get caught up in the Chupacapra mystery as said beast begins terrorising the locals. It's not very good as the plot is practically discarded in favor of endless running around scenes and over-indulgence in set pieces.

The recent Scooby Doo feature-length animations have had decent stories, nice atmospheres and a couple red-herrings. It's very post modern and has certainly help revamp the franchise. But Monster of Mexico feels very dated and 60's. The gang are back wearing their old clothes instead of the modern gear they wore in the first four animated movies.

The ending is no surprise and completely unsatisfying. I don't like it. I wish for the next one to be a little more sophisticated. I mean children are intelligent and they deserve intelligent entertainment. Monster of Mexico may have been okay back in the 60's but in the modern day it's quite poor.

The DVD has a great 1.33:1 picture and a rather good Dolby 5.1 soundtrack. The extras are rubbish apart from the commentary by Shaggy and Scooby which is actually a really neat touch. I was excited at the Batman: Mystery of the Batwoman trailer featured here but it's 20 seconds long and shows you nothing. What's the point?