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Movies & TV Movies & TV Reviews

Justin Timberlake flops, but Anna Kendrick scores in chirpy Trolls

TROLLS (Mike Mitchell, Walt Dohrn). 92 minutes. Opens Friday (November 4). See listing. Rating: NNN


Sharing only the cotton candy hair of their plastic doll counterparts, the animated Trolls look a lot like Smurfs scribbled over with day-glo markers. Led by Anna Kendrick’s Princess Poppy, the chirpy creatures love to hug and ooze cutesy happiness to a nauseating degree.

That’s not as off-putting as it sounds. This cartoon comes from filmmakers who worked the alternatively dry and absurd comedy in TV’s SpongeBob SquarePants (directors Mike Mitchell and Walt Dohrn) and King Of The Hill (writers Jonathan Aibel and Glenn Berger). They embrace the unadulterated positivity but also enjoy having a good laugh at it, sprinkling enough witty gags – and plenty of childish ones – like pixie dust over this lightweight distraction.

Best of all, the sprightly vibes are gorgeously visualized in trippy, textured, MDMA-fuelled designs with more bright colours than a bag of Skittles. The plot actually involves miserable monsters called Bergens who try to eat the trolls to get a dose of that happiness. It’s a kid-friendly narrative about popping ecstasy.

That’s a welcome high to counter the lull of Justin Timberlake’s voice. As Branch, a miserably paranoid troll who’s called on to aid a rescue mission in Bergen territory, Timberlake is miscast opposite Kendrick. His awkward attempts at selling the humour fall flat when bouncing off his talented co-star. That’s the price the filmmakers pay to get Timberlake’s throwaway chart-topper Can’t Stop The Feeling to lead the soundtrack.

Even as far as music is concerned, Kendrick’s delightful cover of Sounds Of Silence and her catchy original number Get Back Up Again give JT a run for his money.

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