 | ON: Content is age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | PAUSE: Know your child; some content may not be right for some kids. |
 | OFF: Not age-appropriate for kids this age. |
 | NOT FOR KIDS: Not appropriate for kids any age. |
Space Chimps
- Review Date: November 23, 2008
- G
- Genre: Family and Kids
- 2008
Common Sense Media says
Kiddie space adventure cute, but no WALL-E.
Parents say
QUALITY
Kids say
QUALITY
What parents need to know
Parents need to know that this animated chimp comedy is straightforward and age-appropriate for the young kids it's targeted at. There's some mild peril on an alien planet (an alien tyrant terrorizes his fearful followers by threatening to permanently freeze them), but other than that, there's nothing that even the youngest viewers can't handle.
What's the story?
The nation's space program is in jeopardy after an expensive rover unexpectedly goes off-course through a worm-hole too dangerous for astronauts to navigate. Mission control concocts a last-ditch plan to send chimps on the retrieval mission. Since the first chimp in space, Ham, is long dead, the powers that be select his grandson, wise-cracking circus performer Ham III (voiced by Andy Samberg) to join trained chimp crew members Titan (Patrick Warburton) and Luna (Cheryl Hines). Things get a bit tricky when they eventually find the rover on a pastel-colored planet where a tyrant named Zartog (Jeff Daniels) is using it to enslave his fellow aliens.
Is it any good?
With Pixar creating thoughtful, memorable animated films like WALL-E that even childless adults love, it's hard for a regular old cartoon comedy to compete. But once your initial surprise at the Care Bears-level animation wears off, you may find that it's easy to enjoy SPACE CHIMPS' silly jokes. The references to The Right Stuff, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and Apollo 13 are obvious but still clever.
Bottom line? The combination of space exploration and talking animals should make this appealing for the 7-and-under set. Not every animated movie has to be a sophisticated masterpiece, and sometimes a goofball chimp and his buddies are good for laughs.
What families can talk about
Families can talk about why Ham doesn't take anything seriously at first. Is it difficult to live up to accomplished relatives? Kids: How does teamwork save the day? What else do the chimps learn in this movie? Families can also discuss whether the high standards set by Pixar's Oscar-winning movies have made other animated films less enjoyable. Do you expect more from animated movies now? Why or why not?
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AGE
Not appropriate for 4+
I think this movie is too violent for young children aged 4 to 7. Many scary scenes of monsters eating characters, etc. that frightened my 5 year old daughter. Had to leave the movie half way through. I was dissapointed with the rating this website gave this movie. Normally they are dead on the money.
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AGE
Main Part Nailed By Andy Samberg!
Although I don't think many kids know who Andy Samberg is, I think they will all find him hilarious in this comedy! Violence is to a minimum and it isn't very scary. I find the animation not very great when it comes to the action sequences, to it takes some of the essence out. But the witty dialogue and extremely likeable characters make this movie worthwhile.
Language is very minimum as well, as the worst thing said is "oh, Lord", repeated about three times. Other than that, only about six deity exclamations popped up that I noticed.
Drugs and alcohol are out of the question. Consumerism is a slight issue, and Andy Samberg's characters, Ham III, don't set very good role models with reckless behavior and pretty tame but still not very nice language.
Anyways, it's a great film and you should watch it!
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AGE
It's Too Lovey
This is OK but too much love, and way too much violence, it only has a little educational value
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AGE
Way too frenetic, too loud, too much action and craziness for young kids. Characters are often rude, obnoxious. And finally, most of it is way over the heads of 5-7 year olds.
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AGE
ok but son found it unfunny and too scary
This movie and CSM's review of it were both disappointing to me. First, most of the jokes (references to evolving, opposable thumbs, David Bowie) were adult-oriented and there weren't enough little kid jokes to compensate. Second, my not-quite 5-year-old son who didn't even bat an eye watching Star Wars: A New Hope or The Goonies at home was TERRIFIED! He told me halfway through that it wasn't funny, he was scared, and he wanted to go home. My son does not scare easily, but I had to hold him in my lap for the last 30 minutes and talk him through it. He was very scared of the evil alien. Since this was only his third theater trip (the other two being Cars and WAL-E), I can only guess that scary scenes on the big screen were too much for him. It’s probably fine for most kids but if your child is young and sensitive or has little exposure to the big screen, you might wait until it’s on video.
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AGE
There's Better Stuff Out There
If you're just desperate for something for family movie night and your kids are easily entertained, then this might fit the bill. My husband and I found it annoying and/or boring for the most part. Very young children might find the alien frightening. Many of the jokes make pop culture references that only adults will get...which seems odd for something aimed at children. No red-flags but nothing extraordinary. My 9-year-old son enjoyed it but the 12-year-old and adults were pretty bored.
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AGE
good for 6+
This movie was actually not bad I like monkeys so it was a bit of a shock.
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AGE
cute movie
I thought space chimps was a cute and funny kids movie that is great for all ages and the whole family
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AGE
Too Scary for Preschoolers
The movie had a lot of scary looking alien monsters with big teeth that gave my 4 year old night mares. My 7 year old daughter enjoyed the movie & thought it was pretty funny.
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AGE
Bad movie for adults, not so good for kids
I think this was just bad, but I also think it should have been PG based on the scary scene in the cave. Don't see it, though, and then you don't have to worry.
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| Topics: | adventures, space and aliens, wild animals |
| Studio: | Vanguard Animation |
| Director: | Kirk De Micco |
| Cast: | Andy Samberg, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels |
| Genre: | Family and Kids |
| Run time: | 81 minutes |
| Theatrical release date: | July 18, 2008 |
| DVD release date: | November 24, 2008 |
| MPAA rating: | G |
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