Scooby-Doo (film)

Scooby-Doo
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Raja Gosnell
Produced by	Charles Roven Richard Suckle
Screenplay by	James Gunn
Story by	Craig Titley James Gunn
Based on	Scooby-Doo by Joe Ruby Ken Spears
Starring	Matthew Lillard Neil Fanning (voice) Freddie Prinze, Jr. Sarah Michelle Gellar Linda Cardellini Rowan Atkinson Miguel A. Núñez, Jr. Isla Fisher
Music by	David Newman
Cinematography	David Eggby
Editing by	Kent Beyda
Studio	Mosaic Media Group Hanna-Barbera
Distributed by	Warner Bros. Pictures
Release date(s)	June 14, 2002 (2002-06-14)
Running time	86 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$84 million[1]
Box office	$275,650,703

Scooby-Doo is a 2002 American comedy film based on the Hanna-Barbera television cartoon series Scooby-Doo about a group of young detectives and their talking dog. It is the first installment in the Scooby-Doo live action film series. The film was directed by Raja Gosnell, produced by Charles Roven and Richard Suckle, and written by James Gunn and Craig Titley for Warner Bros.

The film stars Matthew Lillard as Shaggy, Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne, Freddie Prinze, Jr. as Fred, Linda Cardellini as Velma, and Neil Fanning as the voice of Scooby-Doo, along with Scott Innes as the voice of Scrappy-Doo and Rowan Atkinson as the owner of an island amusement park. Scooby-Doo and the other nonhuman characters were created on-screen using computer-generated imagery.

Reggae artist Shaggy and rock group MXPX perform different versions of the theme song. Shaggy got his stage name from a previous hairstyle of his he says, not from the character. In 2004, this film was followed by a sequel, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.

A prequel, Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins, aired on Cartoon Network Sunday, September 13, 2009. A sequel, Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster, aired on Cartoon Network on Saturday, October 16, 2010. The Scooby-Doo Spooky Coaster, a ride based on the film, was built in Warner Bros. Movie World in Gold Coast, Australia in 2002.

The film bears noticeable similarities to the 1998 animated film, Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island, in which Mystery Inc. split up but later reunite to solve a mystery that involves actual monsters. A similar storyline is the central plot of this film.

Plot

At a factory the group are investigating the Luna Ghost in a typical case. Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar) has been captured, bound with jump rope and gagged with her own scarf. The gang trap goes wrong, but despite this the ghost is captured. The ghost is revealed to be a creepy janitor. After solving the case of the Luna Ghost, the members of Mystery Inc. argue over Fred's taking credit for Velma's plan, Daphne being told she always gets captured, and the group disband. After 2 years, Fred (Freddie Prinze, Jr.) who was the group's leader, becomes a celebrity, Daphne, who was the team's damsel in distress is now a martial arts expert, and Velma (Linda Cardellini), the team's genius is now a NASA employee, while Shaggy (Matthew Lillard) and Scooby (Neil Fanning) the group's dimwitted, but heroic backup have now become beach bums.

Two years after breaking up, the gang are each invited to the remote amusement park Spooky Island. After an airplane flight to the island in which Shaggy falls in love with a young woman named Mary Jane (Isla Fisher), they meet the park's owner, Emile Mondavarious (Rowan Atkinson), who explains that something strange is happening to the visiting students.

Despite Fred, Velma and Daphne still refusing to work together- although Scooby and Shaggy are fine with their friends-, the five investigate. A man named N'Goo Tuana (Steven Grives) explains that the island's demons seek vengeance against Mondavarious for building the theme park, and a demon lures Scooby into the forest. Despite a warning from Voodoo Maestro, Daphne goes to a castle containing a closed-down ride, only to find the rest of the gang, who realize it is the obvious place for mysterious wrongdoing. Daphne finds a tetrahedron-shaped artifact called the Daemon Ritus, and Velma and Fred discover a classroom with a training video for non-humans. They all flee when confronted by N'Goo's henchmen, including a masked wrestler named Zarkos.

At the island's hotel, Velma reminisces about Scrappy Doo (Scott Innes), a little dog who was kicked out of Mystery Inc. due to his annoying behaviour. Just then, monstrous demons storm in and captures Fred, Velma, Mondavarious, and most of the guests. Mary Jane calls the Coast Guard for help, but they do nothing, having already been possessed by demons. The next day, Fred, Velma, Mary Jane and more guests are possessed, and Zarkos captures Daphne and the Daemon Ritus. When Scooby falls down a hole, Shaggy follows him into an underground hideout and finds the Daemon Ritus near a vat full of protoplasmic heads containing people's souls. When he pulls Velma, Daphne and Fred out of the vat, they return to their bodies. Daphne and Fred initially get mixed up with each other, but with help from the Daemon Ritus, the sleuths return to their original bodies and find Maestro, who explains that the demons will rule Earth for the next 10,000 years if their leader absorbs a "purely good soul". They realize that the pure soul is Scooby, and that the plans mastermind is Mondavarious, who arranged for Scooby to come to the island to trick him into being a sacrifice (Although Fred notes that this stil fails to explain why he and the others were brought here).

Meanwhile, Velma has discovered that the demons explode in sunlight, which is why they need to possess the guests. Finally working together again, Mystery Inc. sets a trap to kill the demons by reflecting sunlight from a skull-shaped disco ball, but it doesn't work. Fred and Velma are captured, and Scooby's protoplasm is extracted from his body leaving it limp and presumeably dead. In desperation, Shaggy attacks Mondavarious as he absorbs the protoplasmic heads, freeing Scooby and revealing Mondavarious to be a robot controlled by Scrappy Doo, hoping to gain his revenge on the gang after summoning them the island to witness his triumph. Using his newly absorbed protoplasm, Scrappy expands into a giant version of himself, and another madcap battle ensues in which Daphne uses her martial-arts skills to defeat Zarkos, who falls into the hole and lands on the vat.

When the vat tips over, the protoplasmic heads return to their bodies and Daphne deploys the disco skull, which reflects sunlight streaming down the hole, killing the demons. Shaggy sucks the remaining protoplasm back out of Scrappy, who returns to his original appearance, Fred and Daphne share a kiss, and Shaggy finds the real Mondavarious trapped underground. After a public presentation in which Fred finally allows Velma credit for her work, the members of Mystery Inc. do their signature hands-together cheer. Scrappy, N'Goo, and Zarkos are arrested and taken away by coast guard helicopters, and the film ends as Scooby and Shaggy enjoy the 'all you can eat' deal that was used to lure them to the island.

Cast

• Freddie Prinze, Jr. as Fred Jones
• Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne Blake
• Matthew Lillard as Shaggy Rogers
• Linda Cardellini as Velma Dinkley
• Rowan Atkinson as Emile Mondavarious
• Isla Fisher as Mary Jane
• Miguel A. Núñez, Jr. as Voodoo Maestro
• Steven Grives as N' Goo Tuana
• Sam Greco as Zarkos aka The Masked Wrestler
• Michala Banas as Carol
• Kristian Schmid as Brad
• Martin Broome as Melvin Doo
• Nicholas Hope as Old Man Smithers / The Luna Ghost
• Holly Brisley as Training video woman (as Holly Ann Brisley)
• Remi Broadway as Training video guy
• Andrew Bryniarski as Cavern Henchman
• Janis McGavin as Co-Ed Hottie
• Kym Jackson as Autograph Seeker
• Sugar Ray as Themselves
• Pamela Anderson as Herself
• Sandra McCoy as Waitress (uncredited)
• David Knijnenburg as Island Traveler (uncredited)

Voice Cast

• Neil Fanning as Scooby-Doo
• Scott Innes as Scrappy-Doo
• J.P. Manoux as Scrappy Rex
• Frank Welker as creatures
• Jess Harnell as creatures

Development

The film was originally set to have a much more adult tone, essentially poking fun at the original series, much like The Brady Bunch Movie and was set for a PG-13 rating. Shaggy was set to be a stoner, Velma and Daphne had a side relationship,^[2] and there were many more marijuana references.^[3] Several rumors about these aspects in the original cartoon series were passed around by fans of the original and were to be incorporated into the live action film.^[4] One marijuana reference that was retained was the use of "Mary Jane" as the name of Shaggy's love interest. Especially noteworthy was the scene where they met on the plane. After learning her name was "Mary Jane" Shaggy states that that is his favorite name, a not-so-subtle reference to his other love.

According to Sarah Michelle Gellar, after the cast had signed on there was a change and the film became more family-friendly. Some of the original adult jokes are still in the film. They're also included as deleted scenes on the DVD.^[5] Filmmakers had stated by the week of August 9, 2002 that most of the rumors would not be alluded to in the Scooby-Doo film as the filmmakers wanted a film that appealed to families.^[4]

Reception

Scooby Doo received mixed to largely negative reviews from film critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the movie has a "Rotten" rating of 30%, with an average score of 4.4 out of 10. On Metacritic, the film has a 35 out of 100 rating.

Box office

However, despite the mixed reception, it made $19,204,859 on its opening day and $54,155,312 over the weekend from 3,447 theaters, averaging about $15,711 per venue and ranked #1 at the box office. The film closed on October 31, 2002, with a final gross of $153,294,164 in the United States. It made an additional $122,356,539 in other territories, bringing the total worldwide gross to $275,650,703, making it the 15th most successful film worldwide of 2002.^[6] Gellar won Choice Movie Actress: Comedy at The Teen Choice Awards. Prinze Jr. was nominated for a Razzie for Worst Supporting Actor. Lillard, however was praised for his role as Shaggy.

Release

The film was released on DVD in late 2002. The release included many special features and deleted scenes, including an alternate opening animated in the style of the original TV series. On 18 August 2010, it was announced by Warner Bros. that the film and its sequel would be released as a double feature on Blu-ray in November 2010.^[7]

Soundtrack

Main article: Scooby-Doo (soundtrack)

A soundtrack containing hip hop, reggae and alternative rock was released on June 4, 2002, by Atlantic Records. It peaked at #24 on the Billboard 200 and #49 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums as singer, Shaggy performs the theme song of Scooby-Doo, Where are You? but instead was entitled, "Shaggy, Where are You?"

Video games

A video game based upon the film was released for Game Boy Advance shortly before the film was released. The game is played in 3rd person point-of-view and has multiple puzzle games and mini-games. The game's structure was similar to a board game. The game was panned by critics and was a poor seller.

Novelization

Scholastic Inc. released a novelization of the story in conjunction with the film. The novel was written by American fantasy and science fiction author Suzanne Weyn.

References

1. ^ Dayna Van Buskirk, Reg Seeton (2004-03-01). "Unleashing Monsters & Zombies". UGO. http://screenwriting.ugo.com/screenwriting/jamesgunn_interview.php. Retrieved 2008-04-23. 
2. ^ http://www.tvguide.com/news/Lesbian-Secrets-Scooby-41340.aspx
3. ^ Entertainment Weekly, 636/637 - Jan 25th Issue. Page 38
4. ^ ^{a b} Sigesmund, B.J. "The Inside Dope." Newsweek. June 14, 2002. Available at Lexis-Nexis.
5. ^ "Sarah Michelle: The Buffy Slayer". Marie Claire, November 2006. Vol. 13, Issue 11. Page 100.
6. ^ http://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?view2=worldwide&yr=2002&p=.htm
7. ^ http://bluray.highdefdigest.com/news/show/Disc_Announcements/Warner_Brothers/Scooby-Doo/Scooby-Doo_2:_Monsters_Unleashed_Announced_for_Blu-ray/5274

External links

	Film portal
	United States portal

• Scooby-Doo at the Internet Movie Database
• Scooby-Doo at AllRovi
• Scooby-Doo at Box Office Mojo
• Scooby-Doo at Rotten Tomatoes
• Scooby-Doo at Metacritic