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You know how there are some movies that you just loved as a kid, and then you rewatch them and wonder what you were thinking as a child? Yeah, that’s me right now.
I’m not always like that. I was the queen of loving things when I was a child, rewatching them and finding a new appreciation for them. I fell even deeper in love with Avatar: The Last Airbender when I rewatched it. I found a deeper appreciation for Nani upon rewatching Lilo & Stitch. Heck, even rewatching all the Scooby Doo movies from when I was a child made me smile from ear to ear.
But I decided to extend that to The Adventures of Sharkboy & Lavagirl this past weekend – or rather, what most call it, Sharkboy & Lavagirl. And I have to admit…it is not what I remembered at all as a kid.
I Remember As A Child, I Used To Think The World Looked So Cool
So here’s the thing. I grew up with some of the best fantasy movies. Honestly, my age had an abundance of fantasy. The early 2000s were filled to the brim with Harry Potter films, The Lord of the Rings movies, and numerous other great picks. We also had plenty of great sci-fi films, ones that really redefined the genre.
The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl was a hybrid of sorts, combining the fantasy aspects of things taking place within dreams and the strange magic that came with it, while also incorporating a more sci-fi-like setting for many of the scenes, along with some elements of elemental fantasy. And yeah, as a kid, I ate that up. I ate it up time and time again.
I used to think the world looked so cool. Perhaps it was just that I wasn’t exposed to that much, or maybe I loved the idea of escaping the everyday world and entering this dreamlike realm where I was essentially in charge of everything. But I was fascinated by it.
However, I decided to rewatch it as an adult, and… yeah. This movie is not it.
The CGI Is Actually Horrible
Look, I know Sharkboy and Lavagirl came out in the early 2000s. It’s been a notable trend over the last decade or so for people to revisit these older movies and criticize the CGI. I’ve done it too. And honestly, I’ll keep doing it because it was awful.
But the CGI of Sharkboy and Lavagirl is bad on another level for a blockbuster movie.
You’d think that for something as big as this film, they’d have given it a bigger budget, but it was only $50 million for something that was literally marketed as a 3D movie. At the time of release, 3D was really everywhere, and it’s not that surprising that director Robert Rodriguez wanted to capitalize on it, but it just did not work well with this film.
The CGI was poorly done in many different aspects. I mean, the face on Mr. Electric barely looks like it’s supposed to be there. Maybe that’s the point – that he’s supposed to look so haunting you can’t forget him due to the fact that he’s the villain. But good lord, we couldn’t try a little harder?
The Action Sequences Are Really Corny
The CGI, however, isn’t the only thing that makes this movie icky. It’s the action sequences. I know this is a kids movie, but some of these fight scenes are so corny that it makes me roll my eyes while watching it.
And truthfully, if most of these sequences weren’t filmed with 3D in mind, they might look a little better. But these don’t work at all. The choreography feels stiff and awkward, and it’s not at all what it should be for a whimsical movie like this, where dreams are what we create.
The Acting Is Pretty Bad
If I was rewatching this movie for the acting performances, I probably wouldn’t have decided to rewatch it in the first place.
Some of these actors have gone on to do some amazing things – like Taylor Lautner and his huge role in the Twilight films. But every actor starts somewhere and the performances in this movie just weren’t that great this time around.
Granted, this is a kid’s movie, so I’m not expecting there to be some Academy Award-winning performance. But there were moments where the story was kind of crazy and the acting just didn’t feel super believable. It was hard to watch as an adult. I guess as a kid I was just caught up in all the cool aspects of the movie I didn’t even care about the acting that much.
The Story Is Fine, But There Are So Many Plot Holes
Alright, well, this is also just a harping of my own. Robert Rodriguez’s movies aren’t exactly known for having captivating, well-told stories. We’re really just here for the action and fun sequences most of the time – look at any of his Spy Kids movies.
But Sharkboy and Lavagirl is riddled to the brim with plot holes.
For example, this is Max’s dreamworld – so how come he has no idea what the heck is going on for most of the film? Why can’t he figure it out or redo something? It doesn’t take that long to understand it. Also, how does Mr. Electric even show up in the real world and gain real-world power when this is just a dreamland? Certain things don’t make sense to me.
Even So, At Least I Enjoyed It As A Kid
While I just spent a good 800 words harping on how bad this movie is… I don’t regret enjoying it as a kid.
Obviously, tastes change, we grow up, and sometimes we realize that the things we liked as a child no longer appeal to us in the same way, and we move on. And for me, that is this movie. However, I still remember watching it with my dad, having those memories, and loving it as a kid. For that, I’ll forever be thankful to the little girl who enjoyed this horrendous CGI – because it gave me something to do, allowing me to spend time with my family.
And you can’t really put a price on that.
This honestly makes me want to rewatch all the movies I used to love as a kid. Hmm. I need to check out all the best streaming services to see what’s available—time for a movie marathon.
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