"Epic" Is Actually More Average

The movie “Epic” starts on a familiar note. Actually, it's the first of many, since anyone remotely familiar with eco-movie tropes will recognize a whole lot of them: the eccentric, absentee parent, the plucky heroine, the fantastical creatures, and a fight devoid of any deeper complications or issues. And that's rather sad, since “Epic” has all the right ingredients to transcend the cliché like pretty good animation, a few good story flourishes, and a fantastic cast that includes Beyoncé Knowles, Aziz Ansari, Christoph Waltz, Colin Farrell, and Steven Tyler.

Our plucky heroine this time around is the teenage Mary Katherine (Amanda Seyfried), or M.K. as she calls herself, who's come to visit her estranged father Professor Bomba in the hope of reconnecting. He just happens to be an eccentric scientist who believes that there is a tiny race of people living in the forest. Bomba even theorizes that the reason they haven't been discovered is that they actually exist in a kind of different dimension and thus can move incredibly quickly, making us look like very slow, ridiculous creatures.

M.K. is skeptical of course, until she is magically shrunk down and discovers that these creatures are very real and that they're called Leaf Men. While the Leaf Men are the constructive force in the forest and seek to preserve life, they must battle against a race of creatures who are most at home in rot and destruction called Boggans who seek to destroy the forest.

Of course, M.K. soon discovers she has a part to play in the battle to preserve the forest, and she's got help in the form of two Leaf Men, Ronin (Colin Farrell) a hardened veteran and father figure to the younger and Rebellious Love Interest Nod (Josh Hutcherson), as well as some slugs and a colorful cast of supporting characters.

And that's about it. While there are a few creative story choices and sequences, there's not much depth to the plot or characters to keep anyone but young children interested. What “Epic” actually offers is a humdrum tale that's bolstered by excellent voicework, but doesn't leave much of an impression.

Grade: C+