Film Review - My Sweet Monster
Images courtesy of Rialto Distribution.
A “quirky and unique spin on the animated fairy tale genre” that is actually just as cliche as the rest of them.
Who doesn’t love a good fairytale? Escaping into fantastical worlds of dazzling royalty and majestic creatures is what makes every daydream. However, if you daydream about a fairytale world akin to this film, where everyone is badly dubbed and Pauly Shore is the villain, you might want to reconsider your imagination.
My Sweet Monster explores Princess Barbara’s journey into finding her hero, Prince Edward, to rescue her kingdom from an evil postman, Bundy Joyce, and his robot army. The film also sees her grow with her new friends Bunny and Boogey, the latter being the “sweet monster” in question. The premise is decent enough, but the film isn’t fleshed out enough to deliver a satisfying children’s tale.
The film’s world surprisingly has a lot to offer- from a kingdom under the lead of an engineer, another kingdom stylised after a 1920’s metropolis, and a power source able to give life to anything. My Sweet Monster even had potential to explore some pretty mature themes; it already tackles environmentalism with the villain trying to exploit the life-creating magic called Spark. However, whenever the film merely hints at nuanced ideas, it instead goes for a safe route in the name of making a basic and marketable children’s film. Let’s look at the character Bunny. It’s eventually revealed that he is part-machine thanks to Barbara’s father, King Elijah, and his engineering mastery with Spark. He tells Barbara how his life was worsened by Spark, how he’s immortal and how his children were afraid of him. Instead of using this conversation to give us more nuance about Barbara, her father, and her kingdom, as well as giving more depth to the film’s pre-existing themes of environmentalism, My Sweet Monster just ends the conversation and doesn’t mention it again.
That is just an example of one of the film’s biggest flaws; the lack of sincerity in its story. Characters make decisions they wouldn’t make or are laughably incompetent in order to fulfill the plot. Rules set in the world and common-sense in the real world are broken to satisfy a “Hollywood Ending”. It’s like watching a Disney rip-off from the 90’s/early 2000’s film, but with a paint job and Napoleon Dynamite (who voiced the “sweet monster” Boogey, and sounds just as you imagine it in your head).
There’s nothing wrong with a cookie-cutter children’s film, and not every children’s film has to have “elevated themes”. But let’s not forget that My Sweet Monster is up against the likes of Bluey, Encanto, Klaus, The Bad Guys, Lightyear, etc. We live in a media landscape where children’s content offers audiences so much more in terms of quality, engagement, and ideas. That sentiment is clearer when the movie ends with the sixteen-year-old protagonist most likely, unironically falling in love with an adult man. Why do I say “most likely”? It’s never established. So much for being family-friendly…
Are some of the environments and character designs pretty to look at? Admittedly, yes. Does the film offer some unique elements compared to other animated fairy tale content? Some, yes. But, is it just as bland and at times frustrating to watch? Definitely, yes. Watch it if you want, but if you’re a parent deciding what your children should watch, Lightyear is probably the way to go.
My Sweet Monster is screening in cinemas in Victoria, Queensland and the Northern Territory from Thursday the 23rd of June. For tickets and more info, click here.