Over the Hedge will grow on you. It's a hoot.
Over the Hedge (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:160
Fresh:118
Rotten:42
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Even if it's not an animation classic, Over the Hedge is clever and fun, and the jokes cater to family members of all ages.
Rated: PG [See Full Rating] for some rude humor and mild comic action
Runtime: 3 hrs 3 mins 13 secs
Genre: Childrens
Theatrical Release:May 19, 2006 Wide
Box Office: $155,019,340
Synopsis: Just whose backyard is it, anyway? Spring has sprung, and Verne and his woodland friends awaken from their long winter's nap to discover that a tall, green "thing" has mysteriously cropped up... Just whose backyard is it, anyway? Spring has sprung, and Verne and his woodland friends awaken from their long winter's nap to discover that a tall, green "thing" has mysteriously cropped up right through the middle of their home. Enter RJ, an opportunistic raccoon, who explains that the world beyond the hedge is the "gateway to the good life" where peculiar creatures called humans live to eat, rather than eat to live. Suspicious and even a little jealous of RJ, the ever-cautious Verne wants to keep his blended family safely on their side of the hedge. But, proving the adage that one man's garbage is another man's—or rather animal's—treasure, the manipulative RJ tries to convince the woodland band that there is little to fear and everything to gain from their over-indulgent new neighbors. Eventually, RJ and Verne form an unlikely friendship as they learn to co-exist with—and even exploit—this strange new world called suburbia. Heading up an all-star voice cast, Bruce Willis (the "Die Hard" franchise, "Sixth Sense") is the voice of the mischievous con-artist raccoon named RJ, and Emmy winner Garry Shandling (TV's "The Larry Sanders Show," "It's Garry Shandling's Show") voices the overprotective turtle named Verne in the computer-animated comedy "Over the Hedge." Rounding out the voice cast of "Over the Hedge" are: Steve Carell ("The 40-Year-Old Virgin," TV's "The Office") as a hyperactive squirrel named Hammy; two-time Emmy winner William Shatner (TV's "Boston Legal") as Ozzie, a possum who excels at playing dead with a melodramatic flair; chart-topping recording artist Avril Lavigne as Ozzie's daughter, Heather; Catherine O'Hara and Eugene Levy (both "A Mighty Wind," "Best in Show"), who are paired as the porcupine couple Penny and Lou, with a brood of little porcupine mouths to feed; comedienne Wanda Sykes as a sassy skunk named Stella; two-time Oscar® nominee Nick Nolte ("Affliction," "The Prince of Tides") as a bear named Vincent; and Omid Djalili ("Casanova") as a spoiled housecat named Tiger. On the human side, four-time Emmy winner Allison Janney (TV's "The West Wing") plays Gladys, the president of the local homeowners' association, who isn't about to see her neighborhood overrun by wildlife; and Oscar® nominee Thomas Haden Church ("Sideways") as "the Verminator," whom Gladys hires to rid the area of our woodland heroes. Based on the popular comic strip by Michael Fry and T Lewis, "Over the Hedge" is being directed by Tim Johnson ("Antz") and Karey Kirkpatrick ("Chicken Run" screenwriter), making his directorial debut. Bonnie Arnold ("Toy Story," "Tarzan") is producing. --© DreamWorks [More]
Starring: Bruce Willis, Steve Carell, Garry Shandling, William Shatner
Starring: Bruce Willis, Steve Carell, Garry Shandling, William Shatner, Thomas Haden Church
Director: Tim Johnson, Karey Kirkpatrick
Director: Tim Johnson, Karey Kirkpatrick
Screenwriter: Len Blum, Lorne Cameron, David Hoselton, Karey Kirkpatrick
Composer: Rupert Gregson-Williams
Studio: Paramount Pictures
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Reviews for Over the Hedge
The movie assumes that we humans are the idiots in the natural order, and that we're all too blissfully unaware of it.
The satirical look at suburban blight ... will entertain the grown-ups, while the dizzying antics will keep the kids in stitches.
Where it lacks ingenuity and cohesive storytelling, it satiates with manic energy, oddball observation and witty humor...
Compared to such recent animated turkeys as Valiant, Chicken Little and The Wild, this is a movie that soars.
Over the Hedge is an important evolution for DreamWorks Animation because it proceeds from a story, not a compilation of pop culture references.
If the movie doesn't break much new ground, either in terms of its animation or its storyline, it's full of manic energy, clever ideas and jolliness, making it hard to resist.
May satirize suburban foibles, but that doesn't mean family audiences need to see themselves as the target. Who really likes plastic flamingos, anyway?
the first great family film of 2006, and it's a safe bet for all ages
kids might have more fun with the DVD, where they will presumably be able to skip directly to the wild & crazy chase scenes, and skip Ben Folds completely.
The voice work and animation are both a cut above the average, and the film's energy is brisk.
A buoyant and funny animated lark in its own right, regardless of its funny-pages origins.
A cracking adventure, with animation that's worth seeing on the big screen.
[A]ll snark aside, it's one of [Bruce Willis's] best performances ever...
I can digest a certain amount of importance-of-family sap, but I expect something in return.
Maybe the concept just wasn't funny enough to mine for a whole movie. But considering they do a comic strip of this every week, there must be something there if the right person can find it.
The strip's personal tone of humor is replaced by a wacky please-the-kids soullessness that's all the more worrisome because it's actually pretty entertaining.
It is a generic multiplex space holder in between better cartoon releases.
Latest News for Over the Hedge
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May 31, 2007:
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May 17, 2007:
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