Caught this one in the theaters back at the first of the year and just gave it a second go-round on Blu-Ray. Well, my reaction was, if anything, even more positive on a second viewing than my reaction on a first viewing. And my first viewing reaction was really positive as it stood. It’s just such a wonderful, clever, engaging movie. It’s just a great flick. The voice cast could not be better and the writing is super-sharp. Vitruvius alone, hilariously written and wonderfully voiced by Morgan Freeman, is worth the price of admission. The film is a witty satire, a heartfelt emotional story, a hilarious comedy and a thrilling action-adventure and it just succeeds across the board. And just when you think the film can’t surprise you anymore it throws a joke you never saw coming or, as at the climax, just does a radical stylistic shift that blows your mind. And, yes, it goes without saying, I saw all kinds of new things on this second viewing as well as rediscovered all kinds of things I had completely forgotten. God bless Lord & Miller; long may they prosper. With this movie and 22 Jump Street, both coming out the same year, they were responsible for, by sheer quantity of laughs, the two funniest movies of the past three or four years I’d say. And, interestingly, two movies that were incredibly different from each other. Well, back to this movie in particular, it’s just a winner. Hopefully you caught it in theaters. If you didn’t, there’s no time like the present to fix that oversight. Great movie. Highly recommended. 4 stars.
tl;dr – frenetic, incredibly smart, hilarious, well-characterized, well-acted. One of the funniest movies in years, but with surprising heart. A masterpiece. 4 stars.