“Hop” (Universal Pictures)
Hop Is A Flop
“Hop” is the kind of film you hope will appeal to both kids and adults, much in the way “Despicable Me” did. This latest combination of animation and live action appears to have the characters and the warmth to make it into a new classic. But what you expect and what you get when actually viewing the film are two different things. “Hop” is boring and not funny. In short “Hop” is a flop.
So what went wrong? To begin with the “human” story is just dull. It focuses on Fred (James Marsden), a slacker still living at home when he is much too old to be there. In truth Marsden looks more like a contemporary of Gary Cole, who plays Fred’s father, than a son to him. Plus Fred’s character is just not appealing. He has no ambition and acts goofy.
When he meets E.B. (voiced by Russell Brand) there is no immediate rapport. EB has run away from Easter Island because he doesn’t want to inherit the mantel of the Easter Bunny. He wants to be a drummer. His father (voiced by Hugh Laurie) can’t understand his reluctance to carry on tradition.
The rest of the movie is about Fred’s search for a job and EB’s desire to be a drummer. This leads to guest shots by David Hasselhoff, Chelsea Handler and the Blind Boys of Alabama. None of these appearances add anything to the movie. In fact the appearance of Hasselhoff seems to signal desperation on the part of the moviemakers.
One bright spot is the appearance of the chickens. Their leader Carlos (voiced by Hank Azaria) is determined to become the new Easter Bunny. He has all of the chickens who work as laborers at the Easter Egg Company to back him up. These chicks could easily have become the “minions” of this film, but they don’t. They have a comic element but it is never enlarged.
Gary Cole, Elizabeth Perkins, Kaley Cuoco, and Tiffany Espensen are wasted as “Fred’s family.” They have nothing to do but look silly at various times in the film. Brand is a plus as the voice of EB and even makes a cameo in the film. Marsden who can usually make any role appealing loses his battle with this one.
The film is rated PG for some rude humor.
“Hop” had a lot going for it but never capitalizes on any of it. The result is a film that will probably draw in the kids but the adults will wonder when it is all going to be over. It had the possibility of ending up as another “Despicable Me” but instead just ended up being almost despicable.
I scored “Hop” a floppy 4 out of 10.