Movies often come in accidental clusters, and in 2010 we got two computer-animated films with supervillains as protagonists, namely Despicable Me (reviewed previously) and Megamind. Aside from that basic germ of an idea, the films are quite different, and both are fun, though I didn’t like this one quite so much as I did Despicable Me.

The premise is what if the infant Superman (here called Metro Man) came to Earth at the same time as another alien baby from another exploding world, with circumstances on this planet turning one into a hero and the other into a villain. The two are rivals their whole lives, but when Megamind (Will Ferrell) finally defeats Metro Man (Brad Pitt) in one of their battles, he finds he doesn’t really like being a victorious villain. There are tons of in-joke references to other superhero movies, especially the classic Superman series. Tina Fey voices the Lois-Lane-like television reporter Megamind has a habit of kidnapping as part of his diabolical plots, and Jonah Hill is her videographer who proves rather dangerously nutty.

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