Monsters vs. Aliens (PG, 94 minutes): This super-duper-3-D-big-screen-Imax-deluxe extravaganza has bells and whistles, superb technical sophistication, dazzling visual effects, sound, fury and Reese Witherspoon. What it doesnt have is heart. Even children appreciate a good story, and thats precisely whats missing in this film, which is nominally about a bunch of government-sponsored monsters that do battle with an evil alien squid craving world domination. Thats plot, not a story. And too often, its about things, not characters.

One exception is B.O.B., a forgetful blue gelatinous blob that, as voiced by Seth Rogen, not only elicits but earns his laughs. As for the rest of the movie, it will recede into your own B.O.B.-like memory bank, dissolve quickly and disappear forever.