Snails are probably some of the least exciting animals around. They move slowly, are not that interesting to look at and leave a slimy trail behind them. This Dreamworks picture tries to change that image by literally injecting one with nitro, which apparently changes a normal snail into a car like one, radio, alarms and all. If Peter Parker can turn into Spiderman because of a spider bite then this probably makes as much sense. With his new found superpower of speed the snail in question, called Turbo, wants to prove himself and race. And this isn’t a race against other snails, it is against racecars at the Indy 500. Of course this is a ridiculous idea for a movie, but can Dreamworks make it into a fun and interesting movie?
The answer is a mixed one. The movie has a lot of jokes, but they are often very silly and will appeal more to kids. Thanks to the excellent voice work the snails do have their own personalities, but since the focus is on Turbo they are generally there for comic relief and you simply don’t get to know them. The story drives forward to the Indy 500 and deals with concepts as rivalry, believing in yourself and family.
It is therefore a movie which will appeal to kids, but which might leave older viewers slightly bored. This movie has spawned a cartoon series on Netflix, so if the little ones can’t get enough of a racing snail they will be able to watch more of it there.
Very good review. I enjoyed this one slightly more than you, but understand the points you make. For me, the strength of the voice work was enough to keep me interested.
The voice work was good, but for me that simply wasn’t enough…