Animator Chris Wedge’s (Ice Age, Robots) first feature with a human cast successfully mixes live action and animation to produce a family film that isn’t a monstrous trek. High school senior Tripp (Lucas Till), eager to shake the dust of his crummy little town off his feet, spends his free time combing junkyards for the parts needed to slap together a janky pickup. An accident at the local oil-drilling company releases the good-natured tentacled blob named Creech, a flubbery, oil metabolising creature that attaches itself to the Trippmobile’s undercarriage. Originally slated for a May 2015 opening, the release date was regularly pushed back to accommodate post-production work. When Viacom took a hit in its third-quarter earnings for 2016, Monster Trucks took the blame. Too bad, because audiences could do (and have done) a lot worse than this genial throwback to a time when Kurt Russell was Disney’s #1 living, breathing attraction. With Jane Levy as Tripp’s saucer-eyed love interest. (2017) — Scott Marks
This movie is not currently in theaters.