Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed

Scooby and Shaggy save the day in Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed--or to be more precise, they save the movie. The CGI-generated scaredy-cat dog and his whimpering stoner sidekick (Matthew Lillard) garner such a disproportionate share of the laughs that you almost have to wonder whether a different screenwriter (with half the wit) wrote the balance of the movie. Alas, James Gunn (who wrote the first Scooby-Doo flick) penned the whole thing--even the paid product placements for Burger King and the 15-minutes-of-fame sing-along cameo by American Idol 2 winner Ruben Studdard. Without much to work with in terms of inspiration (the original cartoon was never terribly clever), Gunn conjures up a surprisingly resourceful plot in which havoc is wreaked by the seemingly inexplicable reanimation of every monster ever encountered by the Mystery Inc. gang. But his dialogue is embarrassingly slapdash and his subplots are pitiful. That Scooby-Doo 2 is any good at all is only because of Lillard and the funny CGI Scooby. A strong optional purchase. [Note: Available in either a widescreen or full screen version, DVD extras include seven minutes of deleted scenes with optional audio commentary by director Raja Gosnell, the 10-minute production featurette “Triple Threat” featuring a “Scooby Cam” with narration by Scooby-Doo, the six-minute villain featurette spoof “True Ghoul Hollywood Stories,” the five-minute “The Dancing Dog” special effects featurette on Scooby's moves, the interactive clue-finding games “Monsters Unleashed Challenge” and “Behind the Mystery Mystery: The Mystery of the Missing Pants,” the music videos “Thank You (Falletin Me Be Mice Elf Again)” by Big Brovaz, and “Don't Wanna Think About You” by Simple Plan, trailers, and DVD-ROM features. Bottom line: a fun extras package for a so-so sequel.] (R. Blackwelder)