Escape From Planet Earth.

It may not be the freshest concept in the galaxy, but what Escape from Planet Earth may lack in novelty, it compensates for with a zippy pace and lively voice characterizations, led by Brendan Fraser, Sarah Jessica Parker, Sofia Vergara and William Shatner.

The first full-length effort from Vancouver's Rainmaker Entertainment in partnership with The Weinstein Company, the 3D animated adventure zooms in on an alien astronaut superstar from the Planet Baab who finds himself captured by sinister forces over on the third planet from the sun.

When the Fraser-voiced Scorch Supernova (imagine a blue, even more blustery Buzz Lightyear) answers a distress call from the Dark Planet, it turns out to be a trap masterminded by one General Shanker (Shatner), a military man with an Elvis toupee and a crazed thirst for power.

Over the years he's been systematically kidnapping alien visitors and using their talents for his own nefarious purposes.

Coming to the rescue is Scorch's brainiac brother, Gary (Rob Corddry), who must figure out a way to spring his intergalactic brethren before Shanker succeeds in his plans to scorch Scorch's home turf.

Between the likes of Wall-E, Monsters vs. Aliens and Planet 51, Escape from Planet Earth is certainly covering terrain that feels anything but alien.

But credit director Cal Brunker -- who graduated from Ontario's Sheridan College -- and co-writer Bob Barlen (a Canadian Film Centre alumnus) for cloaking it in bright primary colours that pack a nice pop and sneaking in some amusing pop culture asides.

Also getting the job done is the energetic voice cast that also includes Parker as Gary's take-control wife, Kira, Vegara as a bubbly TV news reporter not-so-secretly smitten with Scorch and Jessica Alba as Gary's ambitious but duplicitous boss, Lena.

Then there are the assorted earthbound alien prisoners voiced by Jane Lynch, Craig Robinson, George Lopez, Steve Zahn and Chris Parnell, while Ricky Gervais practically steals the show (with a knowing nod to The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) as James Bing, the ultra-glib Mission Control computer.

Not quite as buoyant is the film's "importance of family" requisite emotional underpinning that sags under the added weight of some groaningly soppy tunes.

Yes, we mean you, Owl City and Delta Rae!

Nothing out of this world, but this kid-friendly sci-fi caper still manages to make for a close encounter of the pleasant kind.
More Movie Reviews