Ben 10: Alien Swarm Arrives on DVD

If you have kids at home, you have the perfect excuse to check out Cartoon Network’s live-action feature Ben 10: Alien Swarm. Sure it was made for the tween crowd, but I won’t tell anyone if you happen to enjoy it, too.

The new movie is based on Cartoon Network’s popular animated series Ben 10 Alien Force. It’s all about a group of teens who chase down alien threats with the help of their own individual superpowers. Sixteen-year-old Ben Tennyson (Ryan Kelley) has a clever watch gizmo that lets him dial up a variety of alien alter-egos that he can transform into depending on the situation. The transformation sequences reminded me of Power Rangers but with a new level of sophistication since the monsters are digital as opposed to actors in a rubber suit. Ben’s un-transformations are particularly smooth and spectacular and that’s just a few of the large number of special effects you’ll find in the movie.

The Alien Swarm in the title is a nasty convention of nano-chips that attack like a swarm of bees but instead of stinging, they get under your skin and turn their human hosts into slave labor. Things get really sticky for Ben and his pals Gwen (Galadriel Stineman) and Kevin (Nathan Keyes) when an old friend returns and asks for help. Only trouble is, the feisty Elena (Alyssa Diaz) might be a spy for the other side or she might really be in trouble along with her kidnapped father.

The movie is loaded with action, high tech gadgets and snazzy boy toys including an apple green classic car that steals every scene she’s in. All of the actors do a fine job but I was completely drawn to Nathan Keyes’ Ryan — the moody badboy who looks too much like Jared Padalecki in his Gilmore Girls days. He has this cool power that allows him to change his arm (or his whole body) into what ever material he touches. Metal filing cabinet = fist of steel. Need a softer touch? A rubber tire = mallet hand. And since Kevin has a hair-trigger temper, the effect is called into play more than any other over the course of the film. I wonder what would happen if he invoked his power while eating a cheesesteak. . . could get messy.

Here’s the deal. If you were a fan of Power Rangers, Ben 10: Alien Swarm does them one better. The dialouge is delivered with broad strokes as is common in shows made for tweens and the teen angst abounds but there are a number of unexpected plot twists and high production values means it looks good at every turn.

The DVD, which streets today, is the same film Cartoon Network premiered on TV this past weekend. If you recorded it, I wouldn’t bother buying the DVD as the only special features are a very short “behind the scenes” promo and a music video. But, if you’ve got a young scifi fan on your holiday list, go for the disc — it’s worth it just to get the cool lenticular slip sleeve that shows Ben transforming into an alien beast.

Ben 10: Alien Swarm is available at Amazon and everywhere DVDs are sold as of December 1.

Photo: Cartoon Network