Moshi Monsters: The Movie

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Moshi Monsters: The Movie
Moshi Monsters- The Movie.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byWip Vernooij
Written bySteve Cleverley
Jocelyn Stevenson
Based on Moshi Monsters
Produced byJocelyn Stevenson
Giles Healy
Starring
Edited byMark Edwards
Music bySanj Sen
Production
companies
Distributed by Universal Pictures
Release date
  • 20 December 2013 (2013-12-20)(United Kingdom)
Running time
81 minutes [2]
CountryUnited Kingdom [3]
LanguageEnglish
Budget£2.3 million [4] [ better source needed ]
Box office$2.9 million [5]

Moshi Monsters: The Movie is a 2013 British animated musical adventure film directed by Wip Vernooij and co-directed by Morgan Francis. It is based on the massively multiplayer online role-playing game Moshi Monsters . The film features the voices of Emma Tate, Tom Clarke Hill, Phillipa Alexander, Keith Wickham and Ashley Slater. The film was released to UK and Irish cinemas on 20 December 2013 and grossed $2.9 million. The film's plot follows monsters Katsuma and Poppet, who star in a documentary about their home and are tasked with retrieving a golden egg named the Great Moshling Egg from Dr. Strangeglove and his glumpified sidekick Fishlips.

Contents

Although the film did not receive a theatrical release in North America, it was broadcast on Starz in May 2019, and was available on Hulu and Sling TV. Its North American release was cancelled. [6] [7] It was released for free on YouTube in July 2025 to promote a Kickstarter campaign to relaunch the Moshi Monsters game.

Plot

Fame-hungry Katsuma is excited to star in Roary Scrawl's documentary about Monstro City. He goes with Poppet and her Moshling pet Mr. Snoodle to meet Roary, and they encounter the other monsters Zommer, Furi, Luvli, and Diavlo. Roary also wants the other monsters to star in the movie, which Katsuma begrudgingly accepts. The group decides to first visit Buster Bumblechops's museum to see the recently discovered Great Moshling Egg.

The evil Dr. Strangeglove and his sidekick Fishlips, having captured many Moshlings to turn into Glumps, steal the egg. When the monsters arrive at the museum, they find a holographic kit left by Dr. Strangeglove, telling them that he will destroy the egg unless they bring him three items by midnight (microwaveable Oobla Doobla, a Blue Jeepers' tears, and Frosted Rainbow Rox, which can be used together to hatch the egg).

The monsters set off on a quest to retrieve the three artifacts and take the egg back from Dr. Strangeglove. They obtain the Oobla Doobla from a group of Woolly Blue Hoodoos after Zommer defeats them in a game of limbo, but the group ends up accidentally leaving him behind. The monsters are then captured by the evil Sweet Tooth; after Diavlo helps them escape, he, Luvli, and Zommer are captured by Dr. Strangeglove.

Katsuma, Poppet, Mr. Snoodle, and Furi obtain tears from a Blue Jeepers at Jollywood during a started by Bobbi SingSong. Bobbi teleports the monsters to Mount Sillimanjaro using a "kerfuffle", but Furi wanders off and gets captured.

While climbing Mount Sillimanjaro, Poppet and Katsuma have an argument and the latter shouts, causing an avalanche. They end up trapped in a cave, where Katsuma tearfully admits that it was his fault. Poppet cheers him up by singing the song "We Can Do It" and they manage to find the Frosted Rainbow Rox. The monsters fight Dr. Strangeglove for the egg at the summit. Strangeglove ends up escaping with the three ingredients and the egg, pushes Mr. Snoodle off the mountain, and captures Katsuma and Poppet.

In Strangeglove's ship, the six monsters are imprisoned and about to be killed while Dr. Strangeglove and Fishlips prepare to hatch the egg into a Glump. Mr. Snoodle, having survived his fall, rescues the monsters. Together, they free the Moshlings that Strangeglove captured and defeat him with their help. The monsters celebrate their victory in Monstro City and return the Great Moshling Egg to the museum just before Mrs. Snoodle hatches from it.

Cast

Production

The film was produced by Mind Candy and Cornwall-based animation studio Spider Eye Productions. [1] [8] It was financed and produced entirely in the UK. [9]

Reception

The film received mainly mixed reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 60% based on reviews from 10 critics, with an average rating of 4.8/10. [10]

Helen O'Hara of Empire magazine wrote: "For the very young, the surreal, sweet-toothed pleasures will be captivating. For the older audience member, it may be the longest 81 minutes they've ever spent." [11] Tim Robey of The Telegraph gave it 3 out of 5 and wrote: "The film was lulling and sweetly harmless; the franchise's 80 million global subscribers can't all be wrong." [12] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote that "even fans of the online game Moshi Monsters may find the film version an incredibly annoying and baffling bore." [13] Mark Kermode gave the film 1 out of 5 stars, believing it may entertain very young children, but "will leave adults bored, stupefied, revolted and appalled, but mostly bored". [14]

Guy Lodge of Variety wrote: "Moshi Monsters: The Movie welcomes new converts with an effective combination of seizure-inducing color and insidiously catchy songs." He called the voicework "adequate" and called the songs a welcome distraction. [15]

Home media

Moshi Monsters: The Movie was released on DVD on 14 April 2014 in the UK. [16] It came with either a Jackson or Mrs Snoodle trading card and a Mrs Snoodle code for online and the Moshi Village app. [17]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 Wolfe, Jennifer (20 August 2013). "Mind Candy Confirms First Ever Moshi Monsters Movie". Animation World Network. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  2. "Moshi Monsters: The Movie". British Board of Film Classification . Retrieved 15 March 2025.
  3. "Moshi Monsters The Movie (2013)". BFI. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023.
  4. "Moshi Monsters: The Movie (2013)". IMDb. 20 December 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2014.
  5. "Moshi Monsters: The Movie". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 13 April 2014.
  6. Grant Hermanns (28 April 2020). "Starz Unveils May 2020 Calendar Including Mother's Day Collection". ComingSoon.net.
  7. "Watch Moshi Monsters: The Movie Streaming Online | Hulu (Free Trial)". www.hulu.com. Archived from the original on 29 February 2020. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  8. "Moshi Monster The Movie". Spider-Eye.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2018. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  9. Rhodri Marsden (17 April 2014). "Moshi Monster creator: The man behind a British success story". The Independent .
  10. "Moshi Monsters: The Movie (2013)". Rotten Tomatoes . Fandango . Retrieved 10 October 2021. OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
  11. Helen O'Hara (16 December 2013). "Moshi Monsters: The Movie". Empire .
  12. Tim Robey (19 December 2013). "Moshi Monsters: The Movie, review" . The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 7 December 2017. Retrieved 16 February 2021.
  13. Peter Bradshaw (19 December 2013). "Moshi Monsters: The Movie – review". The Guardian .
  14. Mark Kermode (22 December 2013). "Moshi Monsters: The Movie – review". The Guardian .
  15. "Film Review: 'Moshi Monsters: The Movie'". Variety . 17 December 2013.
  16. "DVD Review: MOSHI MONSTERS - THE MOVIE". STARBURST Magazine.
  17. "Moshi Monsters with Trading Card and Moshling Code". Amazon UK. 14 April 2014.