Movies based on comic strips have a spotty history -- surely "Garfield" still haunts the dreams of many parents, as it
does mine -- but "Over the Hedge" is a buoyant and funny animated lark in its own right, regardless of its funny-pages origins. Based on a comic strip that is widely syndicated but far from household-name status, the film begins as spring dawns on an idyllic wooded area in middle America. Here lives a group of peaceful creatures, just emerging from their winter nap: Verne (voice of Garry Shandling), a turtle, is their methodical de facto leader; and Stella (Wanda Sykes) is a rather butch, tough-talking lady skunk; Hammy (Steve Carell) is a dim-witted and guileless squirrel ("Wanna help me find my nuts?!" he asks without any trace of self-awareness). Rounding out the group is a father and daughter family of possums (William Shatner and Avril Lavigne) and a traditional porcupine household consisting of a mom and dad who sound like they're from Wisconsin (Eugene Levy and Catherine O'Hara) and three rambunctious little boys.
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