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Parents' Guide to

Space Chimps

By Sandie Angulo Chen, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 6+

Silly space adventure has peril, some scares.

Movie G 2008 81 minutes
Space Chimps Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

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age 6+

Based on 14 parent reviews

ncooganore
ncooganore Adult
August 1, 2020
age 7+

Circus Chimp in Space

I think the language was circus freak. Ham III was the grandson of Ham I dead. I don’t know about Ham II. Luna and Titan was that chimp flying with Ham III and Titan keeps calling him circus freak. Violent rocket.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
Too much violence
Too much swearing
Ghirahim
Ghirahim Parent of 12-year-old
January 20, 2019
age 2+

It’s... kind of garbage!

Why... Out of all the movies that “Another Postcard” by BNL could have been featured in... Why did it have to be this? I found out about this movie through that song, and I have to say, this movie is very underwhelming. Don’t waste your time. The only reason I could think of to watch this is if you’re a really, REALLY hardcore Barenaked Ladies fan, or if you just want to make fun of it with friends. As for children, this has no value to them at all. Don’t rot their brains.
See all 14 parent reviews

What's the Story?

The nation's space program is in jeopardy after an expensive rover unexpectedly goes off course through a wormhole 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, wisecracking 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?

Our review:
Parents say (14 ):
Kids say (14 ):

The combination of space exploration and talking animals should make this appealing for the elementary school set. Not every animated movie has to be a sophisticated masterpiece, and sometimes a goofball chimp and his buddies are good for laughs. With Pixar creating thoughtful, memorable animated films such as 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.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why Ham doesn't take anything seriously at first. Is it difficult to live up to accomplished relatives?

  • 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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