Igor Blu-ray delivers stunning video and audio in this fan-pleasing Blu-ray release
This hilarious animated twist on the classic monster movie is must-see family fun! Determined
to prove he can create his own diabolical invention, a mad scientist’s (John Cleese) nice-guy
assistant, Igor (John Cusack), creates a female Franken-monster. But his creation, Eva (Molly
Shannon), is sweet and sings show tunes! That is, until she falls into the clutches of Dr.
Schadenfreude (Eddie Izzard) and his shape-shifting girlfriend (Jennifer Coolidge). Now it’s up
to Igor and his sidekicks (Steve Buscemi and Sean Hayes) to save Eva – and their country –
from real evildoers, including sneaky Prince Malpert (Jay Leno)!
For more about Igor and the Igor Blu-ray release, see the Igor Blu-ray Review
If there is an almost-sure-thing in Hollywood, it's computer-generated animated children's fare.
If it
weren't for the deluge of superhero films, no doubt this first decade of the 21st century would be
remembered cinematically primarily for the influx of popular and spectacular animated fare, with
films like Wall●E, Ice Age, and
Shrek leading the charge. Animated film after animated film from the major players --
Pixar, Disney, DreamWorks, and Fox -- tend to clobber the competition, slowed down, it seems,
by only the next superhero to make the transition to the big screen. Such films also enjoy
tremendous and sustained success on home video (and tend to sparkle on Blu-ray). Like any
good thing and any popular genre, however, there are always the occasional flops, among them
2008's Igor, a dark, jumbled, confused, and too-mature-for-its-audience parody of the
classic monster movies. The young ones are unlikely to appreciate the references to the old
Universal Horror films of yore, may fail to grasp the nuances of the story, and won't even be able
to enjoy what is usually the saving grace of any animated film, namely bright, cheery, animated
characters and locales. Igor is one of the darkest and most obscure animated titles in
memory, and based on its subpar performance at the Box Office, children and parents alike
agreed.
Igor and Eva try to figure out how to beat the animated competition.
In the Kingdom of Malaria, sunny days are no more, and the forecast always calls for wind, rain,
thunder, and a 100% chance of horror! When sun-and-fun forecasts seem unlikely, never to
dispel the gloomy conditions that beset the Kingdom of Malaria, King Malbert (Jay Leno)
devises a new way for the Kingdom to
make money, and that is through the creation of evil inventions. Every year, the Kingdom is
host to the Evil Science Fair, where the most dastardly and destructive of all the inventions will
be unleashed upon the world, unless huge sums of money are sent in to appease the King and
his subjects. As the various mad scientists around the Kingdom prepare to unveil their latest
creations, one Igor (John Cusack) -- the name for the population that sports a humped back and
a (supposedly) low IQ -- wishes to be more. He's managed two inventions of his own, an
indestructible creature named Scamper (Steve Buscemi), and a brain in a jar named, well, Brain
(Sean Hayes).
When the evil scientist he works for, Dr. Glickenstein (John Cleese), dies while attempting to
bring
to life his latest invention, Igor decides to take over and create life from death, which would be
the biggest invention of all time and certainly top whatever the defending champion, Dr.
Schadenfreude (Eddie Izzard), is working on. Igor's invention, complete with a green-glowing evil
bone, arises, but there is only one problem -- she is anything but evil! This kind monstrosity
names herself Eva (Molly Shannon) and fancies herself an actress. She can't harm a fly, and
therefore cannot
possibly win top prize at the fair. That doesn't stop the dishonest Dr. Schadenfreude from
attempting to make her his own, for he has dreams of assuming King Malbert's throne and ruling
Malaria forever. Only a lowly Igor and his unlikely invention can stop him, and just maybe, bring
Malaria out of its dark times forever.
When it comes right down to it, the premise behind Igor is that the nations of the world
succumb to blackmail to prevent this conglomeration of mad scientists from unleashing their
most
heinous of creations upon mankind. It seems like a problem better solved by dropping a few
bunker-busters on the place rather than cowering in fear of the annual Evil Science Fair, but
whatever.
Igor is completely hit-or-miss in every facet of its existence, the story, the animation,
and
the dialogue in particular. It clearly wants to be a children's movie, but how will those young
ones
regard lines about a "dead dog" scented air freshener, or the joys of torturing cats? Will they
enjoy
characters that are clunky and in some cases literally patched together from various other
beings,
and will they find anything to like in the dark, dreary, depressing environs found throughout
Malaria? Igor is a confused jumble of a movie. It hits all of the old-time
Frankenstein and mad scientist clichés, including the throwing of the lever to spark life
into
a creation, the bolts of electricity that flow around, the dark and dank interiors, the
wood-and-iron construction of
the secret lab, and the table that descends from above on four raggedy chains. Some of it might
be enough to make the little ones cry rather than laugh. Igor is also a drag; its compact
runtime doesn't save it from a slow pace and plenty of unnecessary scenes that hinder the flow.
Igor isn't a total failure, however. It might just be good enough that classic Horror fans
could tolerate a viewing to look for all of the references. The movie is also fairly well directed,
features good voice acting, and does contain several good scenes. Ultimately, however,
Igor is lost somewhere between being made for children but only understandable by
adults, only entertaining to some, and endearing to but a few.
Igor arrives on Blu-ray featuring a 1080p high definition transfer, presented in its original
1.85:1 aspect ratio. The animation is mostly dark, but some of the lighter moments, such as a
sequence in chapter three, look most impressive. Both the lighter and darker scenes manage to
look nice in their own ways. Igor doesn't feature the best looking animation; it's
certainly
not of Pixar quality, but what the digital artists have created for this film translates into an overall
attractive visual experience. What colors the artists offer, beyond the grim details that make up
Malaria,
appear vibrant on this Blu-ray disc. Green eye
makeup adoring one character, red buttons on mad scientist equipment, or Eva's eyes, for
example,
all offer excellent color which stands out nicely in contrast to the generally dark locales. The
animation doesn't offer much in the way of fine detail like Wall●E does, but the disc
reproduces what there is to see nicely. There are plenty of scenes that feature thick fog and
smoky
interiors, and the disc never exhibits any banding or blocking in such scenes. The only thing
holding
back Igor, visually, is Igor. It looks very nice for what it is, but it just can't
compete with material like Cars and Ratatouille.
Igor electrifies on Blu-ray with a quality DTS-HD MA 5.1 lossless soundtrack. This is a
rather hefty soundtrack; it features plenty of bass, especially during the "mad scientists" moments
where lighting strikes, thunder booms, and cackling scientists scream out for their latest inventions
to rise. There are plenty of other sound effects that rumble and rattle and roll; a guest beating on a
heavy wooden door and the resultant echoing throughout a cavernous mad scientist's lair, for
example, sounds terrific, as do some scenes of mayhem (accompanied by a most unlikely tune)
during the film's climax. There are some fine directional effects, too. Sound pans across the
soundstage as characters move across the screen, and voices and effects are often heard distinctly
from numerous corners of the soundstage. Dialogue reproduction is particularly strong; Eva's
musical rehearsal at the end of chapter 10 is impressive, room filling, and offering
pitch-perfect fidelity. Surround speakers enjoy plenty of action, too. Igor sports impressive
sound design that translates very well to Blu-ray.
Igor won't spark much interest with its dull supplemental section. Headlining the package
is a commentary track with Director Tony Leondis, Writer Chris McKenna, and Producer Max
Howard. The track is lively and full of energy; the participants are excited to be sharing their
thoughts on the film, from the struggle to find the right opening to the film to the design of the
characters. The track is fine, though only the most ardent of animation fans will want to devote the
entire 86 minutes to it. Concluding the supplements is a series of Conceptual Art galleries --
Characters, Set & Production Design, Storyboards, and Posters --
as well as an alternate opening scene (1080p, 3:18).
Igor is a rare animated project that completely fails to win over audiences. While some
animated films are more successful than others, this one's dark themes and characters,
references to decades-old material that its target audience won't understand or appreciate, and
bleak, lifeless animation all add up to a paltry Box Office take, and indeed, Igor managed to
net less than $20 million in theaters, nothing short of a disaster for an animated film (for
comparison's sake, Madagascar: Escape 2
Africa, released only weeks after Igor, took home almost 9x the revenue).
Nevertheless, Igor isn't a terrible experience, it's just misplaced as a children's movie. It
may have made a good and dark animated tale for adults with some changes here and there, but as
it stands, the film just doesn't hit the right notes as-is. MGM's Blu-ray release of Igor is
about as expected. The disc offers quality picture and sound, and only a few minor supplements.
Igor is worth a rental for anyone with a desire to see it.
MGM Home Entertainment in conjunction with Fox Home Entertainment have announced that they will bring the animated film 'Igor' to Blu-ray on January 20th, day-and-date with the DVD release. Featuring the voices of John Cusack, John Cleese, and Steve Buscemi, no ...
