I just left the theatre, and my first thought: that was a lot of talking.
It is not good, it is not bad. It is forgettable.
My main issue with it was: all the problems are solved very easily. They are able to kill off monsters at the first try. As soon as a problem arises, it gets solved.
There are no bad romantic relationships. Also the family relationship problems are talked out almost immediately.
The world looked interesting and it reminded of how Jim Henson talked about creating the world for The Dark Crystal movie.
And they spent a lot of attention to diversity. Besides the lead and his father, there is only one white character with lines (and to reverse the scifi trope to kill off the black guy immediately, he got killed with the first monster). There was someone in a wheelchair, the dog misses a leg, the son is gay, all ethnicities are here. I am only not sure if the second in command is supposed to be Hispanic or Native American.
I do wonder about why Disney gave this a theatrical release. They hardly did any advertising for it. Besides the first trailer, I didn't see anything. I was in
Disneyland Paris this weekend, there was no merchandise.
Although, I struggle what they would make into merchandise from this movie.
On Wikipedia I found this summary of the less positive reviews, and it does sum up what I am feeling after seeing it:
For
The Washington Post, Kristen Page-Kirby found "the story is too basic and the characters too slight for
Strange World to pack a punch. The visual beauty of the film isn't enough. After all, pretty is as pretty does — and in
Strange World, pretty doesn't do much."Jacob Stoller of
Paste Magazine admitted that while the film "can be arresting—especially with its inventive setting and bulbous creatures—and its attempts at deconstructing the sweaty, macho-man ethos hawked by its inspiration are admirable. But with muddled themes and slight characters, remnants of the old dime magazines coordinate to bring
Strange World down on the wrong side of familiar." Cath Clarke of
The Guardian felt the characters "aren't half-bad", but the "clunky script feels like it's been re-drafted and re-drafted to the point of incomprehension – blowing any chance of conveying a message. However well-meaning, it makes for a surprisingly dull watch."