|
By Afsheen Shaikh
|
|
|
|
Monday, 03 June 2002
It is with great trepidation that I view film makers who re-make classic movies. The whole super-hero thing has been milked, so attention turns towards converting classic cartoons to big budget movies. How we cringed with the TWO Flintstone movies. How we gape at the result of the latest Hanna-Barbera make-over that is Scooby-Doo.
Great childhood memories come flooding back of Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and the cowardly mutt Scooby-Dooby-Doo (where's Scrappy??) who have been brought to life by Freddie Prinze Jnr, Sarah Michelle Gellar (er, why her?), Linda Cardellini and the wonderful Matthew Lillard who looks and sounds exactly like Shaggy. Scooby, meanwhile, has been revamped in glorious 3-D animation.
The accompanying soundtrack is as star-studded as the film's cast-list with contributions from Sugar Ray, Outkast, Shaggy, Uncle Kracker with Busta Rhymes, Baha Men and Kylie Minogue.
It's an odd-ball mixture, half of which are random tracks thrown in to bump up the numbers, while the rest are half-hearted efforts. Beneath them there are a few gems and Outkast's 'Land Of A Million Drums' (complete with Scooby's trademark whimpers), is a lively and catchy bundle of rhymes, as is Lil' Romeo featuring Master P on 'Lil' Romeo's B House' - although Lil' Romeo sounds like Lil Bow Wow...s'pose there's no difference there really.
Normally I'd dig my claws into Allstars but their inclusion of 'Bump In The Night' couldn't be more fitting for the soundtrack. Kylie has lent a brand new track to the score with 'Whenever You Feel Like It', which is a delicious slice of spangly disco-pop. It's not included in the movie, nor does it bear any relevant significance to the theme of the flick, therefore it doesn't fit in, so why bother?
Chucking in a track from Sugar Ray's current (and self-titled album) is a bit cheeky even if Mark McGrath and Co. make a cameo appearance in the movie.
There are a few versions of the infamous Scooby-Doo theme with MxPx's grungey pop take being the best, although Shaggy's limp effort is likely to get more attention. I don't care if his name is a coincidence to the film - he's about entertaining as piles. Uncle Kracker is assisted by Busta Rhymes for a hip-hop track called 'Freaks Come Out At Night', which is simply bland with mind-numbing hook lines.
However, neither could be as awful as 'Thinking About You' by Solange (Beyoncé's sister) featuring Murphy Lee. It's an R&B track sampling the Scooby Doo theme. It's painful to listen to with too many drippy soul warbles and a homie rapping halfway. Basically, it's pants! Merging a range of musical genres together is risky business. Rarely does it work (Spiderman), most times it reeks. (2˝/5)
Release Date: 03 June 2002
Scooby-Doo
|
| |