Scooby-Doo et le Monstre du lac

I just watched this movie. For a Cartoon Original, it wasn't that bad. Actually, pretty well done. Scooby and the gang have to solve the mystery of a Lake Monster. It had some funny parts, mainly targeted for younger kids. I have always loved the original series from the 60's. I was pretty disappointed with the other Scooby Doo movies earlier in 2003. The other Cartoon Network one from 2009 was also good. The plot, although not original, still has refreshing parts. I really advise anyone who loved the series as a child. If you only liked the original series and would hat to watch this, then don't. I thought this was a good movie for a Saturday night.

I'm a fan of the original animated Scooby Doo TV series (1969-1970). It was against these episodes I judged the theatrical releases Scooby-Doo (2002) and Scooby Doo 2: Monster's Unleased (2004). When I saw Curse of the Lake Monster was a feature length movie, without thinking about it I had my expectations set for something comparable to the two theater releases. Oops! Curse of the Lake Monster was a B-movie in many ways, including overt over-the-top acting. I'm not a fan of B-movies and must confess to having some trouble sitting through it all. I would say the movie is a bit worse than Scooby Doo 2. The pace was good and the plot moved along reasonably well. I had no problem at all with the special effects--they were fine.

I consider the brown-haired Fred a production decision blunder. While it stopped bothering me half way through the movie, I never started thinking of Fred as Fred. He was more like a new character to me. Shaggy is very difficult to translate from animation to live action, and I think greater energy put into the character would have been an improvement. The girls will be played better as the actresses gain in confidence and experience.

If you liked Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleased, then Curse of the Lake Monster is probably worth watching.

I grew up with the Scooby Doo cartoon and loved it as a kid and when they brought out the first Scooby live action movie; I was dubious. Thing was, I loved it! I also quite enjoyed the second movie although not as much as the first.

When it came to the original cast, I had issues with Freddie Prinze Jr as Fred as I felt he wasn't butch enough and Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne, because she was both a little too short and I had not yet got over my Buffy crush; but Matthew Lillard as Shaggy was, quite simply, awesome.

This, unfortunately is where this movie falls down. Though I don't doubt the effort of Nick Palatas as Shaggy and indeed his acting chops (he is a young actor starting out) but following Matthew Lillard's Shaggy was always going to be a tall order. What also doesn't help is having a dark haired Fred in the form of Robbie Amell, I struggled to recognise him as Fred.

However, the Daphne (Kate Melton) character I though was excellent and if I could transplant her for Gellar in the first; I would without a second thought.

Bottom line, not a great movie but I guarantee your young children will enjoy it. For the rest of us, its a sad reflection.

I have been a big fan of Scooby Doo for as long as I can remember. The original series, The Scooby Doo Show and The New Scooby Doo Movies I love, Mystery Incoporated was a pleasant surprise, Shaggy and Scooby Doo:Get a Clue was a disgrace(the only one I hate) and What's New Scooby Doo and 13 Ghosts are growing on me. I have also been pleasantly surprised by most of the animated movies, and the live action ones too. I wanted to like Curse of the Lake Monster but it didn't work for me really. There are some good points, Scooby is very cute, Shaggy is still the likable goof-ball I love and Daphne and especially Velma are spot. I didn't like Fred though(but I actually didn't mind him Mystery Begins), and this is not just because of the appearance, for my liking he wasn't macho or cool enough here. Some of the locations are nice and the soundtrack has this infectious energy. However, the editing is rather sloppy in some scenes, sometimes rather hectic in the more tense moments. Also the writing was weak with one too many gags that tried too hard and failed due to lacklustre timing and insipid dialogue and the story is rushed and predictable with the whole Shaggy and Velma idea absurd and never once believable. None of the support characters struck me as memorable either, and the rest of the acting as well as the direction seemed rather bland for my tastes. All in all, didn't work but not a complete disaster. 4/10 Bethany Cox

This Scooby Doo movie was a bit light on the Actual Scooby Doo. Whether it was just too hard to act with an imaginary dog, or too expensive to animate him into every scene, the gang spends a lot of time with out Scooby. Which makes the Mystery fairly easy to guess who the monster is.

On the up side, there are some great Rubber Suit Frog Monsters! And there is a wonderful "By the Light of the Moon" sequence too. Generally I hate songs in cartoons, but this one was awesome.

There was a lot of great touches that made this feel like a Japanese TV show of the likes of Ultraman or Masked Rider. The cartoon feel was prevalent, though many gags failed.

The cast was pretty good. Coming off the first one, "The Mystery Begins" I feel they gelled better this time out. Shaggy does steel the show.

I think more money and better production values would have helped, and maybe a better helmer, but I enjoyed it and look forward to the next one.