'Scooby-Doo' - Review

For some reason, the 2002 live-action adaptation of Scooby-Doo always baffles me because of some of the creative decisions made. Now knowing that this film was written by James Gunn (the man behind the great film known as Guardians of the Galaxy) this film really throws me for a loop. For example, I'm not too sure who this film is made for. You'd think it was made for kids due to a property like "Scooby Doo," but then why all the sexual innuendos? Okay, then maybe this film is for teenagers who would not only get all the jokes, but they also grew up with the classic Scooby-Doo cartoon. It would make sense due to the fact that the plot revolves around college students partying on a resort island and the film casting such actors as Freddie Prince Jr., Matthew Lillard, Sarah Michelle Geller, and Linda Cardellini.

However, that raises the question, How come all the comedy except for some sexual innuendos panders to kids and toddlers with the slapstick and gross-out fart jokes and such?

Right off the bat, I don't even know what mindset I should be going into this film with? Is it a comedy that I could enjoy in my early twenties? Is this a film for toddlers? Who knows?

Whatever this film is, it had me laughing out loud. Yes, you heard me right. Scooby-Doo, the live-action version from 2002, had me laughing out loud multiple times. Before you say anything and tell me how much of a brain-dead idiot I am, let me state some things. One, I recognize that this film is incredibly dated and will become even more dated through the passing of time. Two, I realize that the CGI is downright terrible. Everything from the monsters to Scooby-Doo himself, this film's CGI just looks ugly.

And Three, the performances are so over-the-top and really cheesy.

While I am completely aware of everything I have listed above, I can't help but be wildly entertained because of such reasons. Yes, this film is from 2002 and you can clearly tell. But you know what? I like returning to this era of Y2K teenagers partying on a beach and blasting music like Simple Plan. It's fun to open a time capsule for that era and look back and laugh. Yes, this film's CGI is straight out of a PlayStation video game. But you know what? I laugh every time I see it. And yes, I realize the acting is extremely cheesy. But you know what? With a film about Scooby-Doo, what else are you going to expect. If anything, the acting kind of matches perfectly.

But the two that steal the show are Shaggy and Scooby. Matthew Lillard was born to play Shaggy. I know this is going to sound totally weird, but I would love to hang out with Scooby and Shaggy for a day, talk like weirdos, and eat a ton of food. They both just have this welcoming and endearing innocence to them that even though their dialogue is cheesy and they are, let's face it, pretty worthless to the team and are totally stoners, they are both extremely likeable. Even if there is an entire scene dedicated to them having a burb/fart challenge (and while completely gross, disgusting, and totally pointless in terms of the plot, still had me laughing out loud).

Quick sidenote. You guys know those random jokes that are just so dumb and weird but you laugh uncontrollably every single time you even think about? Well, there is a joke in here that is so dumb that I am currently laughing and it is making this review hard to write. "Don't you mean Melvin Doo?" Gets me every time and I have no idea why.

Another quick sidenote. Isla Fisher is a babe. Moving on.

So is this a good movie? Not even close. It's a pretty bad movie. But sue me for being extremely entertained every time I watch it.