Out on DVD

MONSTERS vs. ALIENS (Cert. PG, out October 26)

Reese Witherspoon, Hugh Laurie, Seth Rogen, Kiefer Sutherland, Stephen Colbert, Paul Rudd, Will Arnett, dir. Conrad Vernon / Robert Letterman, Cert. PG -

Monkey Score: 72%

What it's about:

Susan (Witherspoon) and Derek (Rudd) are about to get married when a meteorite falls to Earth near the church, hitting Susan. She promptly transforms into a giant version of her former self, before being whisked away to a secret bunker by the government. The facility commanded by General W.R. Monger (Sutherland) houses monsters that the army is shielding from public view. Susan makes the acquaintance of evil scientist Dr Cockroach PhD (Laurie), blue blob B.O.B. (Seth Rogen) and The Missing Link (Arnett.) When ill-intentioned alien Gallaxhar lands in San Francisco, the government despatches its monsters to deal with the problem.

What MovieMonkeys thought:

MvA is an entertaining if slightly vacuous addition to the Dreamworks Animation stables. The storyline offers nothing original - government imprisons monsters, aliens attack Earth, government promises freedom to monsters if aliens are dealt with - and struggles to carry on past the half-way point. The film's saving grace is an assortment of well crafted quirky characters, voiced by such talents as Reese Witherspoon,Seth Rogen and Hugh Laurie. Unfortunately for us they have precious little to express themselves with. The film is peppered with very funny moments and great one-liners to keep kids of all ages amused, but a classic it is not. While entertaining to watch it is an eminently forgettable 90 minutes. This said the DVD should do banging business with families in need of rainy day cheer, and the list of extras on offer look promising. The 2-disc version includes B.O.B.'s Big Break, in 2D and 3D, as well as the 3D version of the feature, amongst the usual deleted scenes & featurettes. A funny yet slightly underwhelming effort.

Peppa Pig - Princess Peppa and Sir George The Brave (Cert. U, out 26 October)

Pre-school favourite Peppa is back with 10 new stories starring the mischievous little piggy, baby brother George and all their friends. Parents will no doubt appreciate the relief from the TV repeats. There's also a full episode from new series Ben & Holly's Little Kingdom as a bonus, for a bit of variety. From the same team, it has the quality, sweet characters and even some of the voice talent of its porcine cousin. Clocking in at about 60 minutes this DVD is long enough for a quiet break but won't stop your little ones from going outside to jump up and down in muddy puddles of their own should the weather allow. As sweet and well-made as ever, the new episodes are sure to keep demanding toddlers & pre-schoolers entertained.

E.R. seasons 1-15 (Cert. 15, out 26 October)

If you remember John Carter becoming Dr Carter, Nurse Hathaway falling for Dr Ross, Dr Weaver coming out, Dr Romano's helicopter encounter and Dr Greene passing, you need not be told why this boxset is essential (and probably already covet it.) It won't replace the weekly buzz but should go some way in helping with the withdrawal.