Father and child sit together smiling while looking at a smart phone.

Want more recommendations for your family?

Sign up for our weekly newsletter for entertainment inspiration

Parents' Guide to

Monsters vs. Aliens

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 7+

Homage to '50s alien flicks too intense for youngest kids.

Movie PG 2009 94 minutes
Monsters vs. Aliens Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this movie.

Community Reviews

See all
age 7+

Based on 69 parent reviews

Lebron12James3
Lebron12James3 Parent
December 23, 2021
age 2+

Croissant

1 person found this helpful.
S S.
S S. Parent
February 3, 2023
age 12+

Can we NOT have a scantily clad female character please?

Are we still using the same tired tropes objectifying and hyper sexualizing women and girls? Giant eyes (no, really, look at hers, then look at his), barely there waist, dress that shrinks to a napkin size, showing a garter (fps) and a camera angle that comes ever so close to straight up the skirt? Then in comes Seth Rogan's character in a ANIMATED movie meant for KIDS talking about "boobies"? Come on. Do better!
See all 69 parent reviews

What's the Story?

Susan Murphy (voiced by Reese Witherspoon) is about to marry one of Modesto, Calif.'s, biggest catches -- egotistical local weatherman Derek Dietl (Paul Rudd). But right before she walks down the aisle, a meteorite mysteriously endows her with intergalactic superpowers, and she suddenly shoots up to nearly 50 feet tall. The military immediately ensconces her in a secret prison; there, Susan (now known as "Ginormica") meets fellow internees BOB (Seth Rogen), a sentient blob-like mass; Dr. Cockroach, Ph.D. (Hugh Laurie), a mad scientist who morphed into a roach; The Missing Link (Will Arnett), a half-man, half-fish show off; and a humongous grub called Insectosaurus. When an evil alien (Rainn Wilson) unleashes a destructive robot on San Francisco, the government releases the monsters to take down the massive threat to humanity.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (69 ):
Kids say (93 ):

This is the kind of animated adventure that even child-free audiences can enjoy. DreamWorks Animation often takes a backseat to the computer-animation masters at Pixar, but MONSTERS VS. ALIENS is practically Pixar worthy. Resurrecting the campy, old-school villains of '50s B movies as modern-day heroes is brilliant, even if the target audience won't get most of the references. Directors Rob Letterman and Conrad Vernon should also be applauded for the 3-D action scenes that are thrilling enough for adults without being too intense for tweens.

The voice talent is stellar -- from sweet-sounding Witherspoon to Dr. House as Dr. Roach to friendly shlub Rogen as a brainless blob to Kiefer Sutherland channeling Dale Dye as General W.R. Monger (get it?). And more than a few moviegoers will hoot for joy at the casting of Stephen Colbert as a doltish president who's first seen trying to communicate with the alien robot by playing both the tune from Close Encounters and "Axel F" on keyboard. The president also keeps accidentally almost pushing a big red button that releases nuclear weapons ... which is identical to the one that releases a latte. It's gags like that one that make Monsters vs. Aliens a real blast.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the impact of using violence -- even animated fantasy violence -- to elicit laughs. Why is it funny to see a character get shot? Would it have been as funny if it was a human (or monster) getting shot instead of a generic alien clone? What are the consequences of violence in real life?

  • Families can also discuss how Susan's character evolves in the movie. How does she change, both physically and emotionally? Is she a good role model for girls? Why or why not?

Movie Details

Inclusion information powered by

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended movie lists

Related Topics

Want suggestions based on your streaming services? Get personalized recommendations

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate