Epic wants to be a big, heartfelt family adventure about tiny warriors and a girl who gets shrunk down to their size. It mostly succeeds, even when the plot strains to keep all its threads tied together.
Chris Wedge directs from a script by Tom J. Astle, Matt Ember, Daniel Shere, William Joyce, James V. Hart, and himself. The film is based on William Joyce’s 1996 children’s book The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs. It runs 102 minutes and pairs a story about a teenage girl named Mary Katherine (M.K.), voiced by Amanda Seyfried, with a fantasy world where the Leafmen fight an evil army of creatures called Boggans.
Trailer, via 20th Century Studios.
M.K. And Her Shrunken World
The setup is simple: M.K. moves to Danbury, Connecticut to live with her father Professor Bomba, voiced by Josh Hutcherson. Bomba has spent his life studying the Leafmen, but M.K. thinks his theories are nonsense until she is literally shrunk and pulled into their world. The film leans hard on her disbelief turning into belief once she lands in the forest.
Colin Farrell voices Ronin, the Leafmen’s leader, and Christoph Waltz plays Mandrake, the Boggans’ leader. Waltz’s performance is the standout here — his Mandrake is a cold, calculating villain who cuts through the lighter comedy around him. Seyfried’s M.K. is fine, but she is a bit flat next to the rest of the cast.
The Voice Cast
The supporting voices round out a crowded ensemble:
| Role | Voice Actor |
|---|---|
| Nod | Josh Hutcherson |
| Bomba | Jason Sudeikis |
| Mub | Aziz Ansari |
| Grub | Chris O’Dowd |
| Queen Tara | Beyoncé |
| Taxi Driver | Judah Friedlander |
| Nim Galuu | Steven Tyler |
| Bufo | Pitbull |
| Dagda | Blake Anderson |
Hutcherson plays Nod, an independent Leafman who quits the force, and Waltz plays Mandrake, the Boggans’ leader. Jason Sudeikis voices Bomba, the professor, and Aziz Ansari and Chris O’Dowd play Mub and Grub, a slug and a snail who help M.K. along the way. Beyoncé voices Queen Tara, and Steven Tyler voices Nim Galuu, a glowworm wizard. Pitbull voices Bufo, a toad gangster, and Blake Anderson plays Dagda.
The Battle Against Rot
The Boggans want to spread rot across the land, and the Leafmen stand in their way. That conflict drives the film’s stakes, even if the premise is thin. The film leans on the idea that the health of the forest itself depends on the Leafmen winning, which gives the war a literal meaning beyond just a fight between armies.
Ronin, Nod And The Deer Ride
Ronin promises to look after Nod after his father’s death, and that promise strains the relationship between the two Leafmen throughout the film. Nod is a rebel, and the film spends time showing his reluctance before Ronin recruits him to join M.K.’s quest. The pair eventually bond, and the film suggests they might fall for each other.
The deer ride is a quiet moment of levity in a film full of destruction. It is one of the few scenes that lets the characters breathe outside the constant action.
Mandrake’s Revenge
Mandrake is thirsty for revenge for his son Dagda’s death, and he interrogates Bufo to find M.K. and the pod she carries. The chase builds to a climax where Mandrake learns the pod must bloom under the light of the full moon, which sets the final act in motion.
The Pod And The Full Moon
Nim Galuu tells the group the pod must bloom that night, exposed to the light of the full moon. The film holds this rule over the audience’s head, building tension as the deadline approaches. Ronin leaves, and Nod takes M.K. on a deer ride while the others wait for the moon to rise.
The Film’s Reception
Epic was released internationally on May 16, 2013, and in the United States on May 24, by 20th Century Fox. It premiered at the Ziegfeld Theatre on May 18. Critics were generally mixed, with the film earning a score of 6.6 out of 10. Audiences responded better, and the film grossed $268 million against its $93 million budget.
A Mixed Verdict
The film is ambitious. It tries to juggle a teenage coming-of-age story, a fantasy war, and a message about protecting nature all at once. It does not always manage that balance well, and some scenes feel rushed to fit everything in.
But the animation is strong, and the voice cast sells the emotional beats even when the script stumbles. The deer ride, the bond between M.K. and Nod, and the final confrontation with Mandrake are the film’s best moments.
Epic is a film that aims high and occasionally reaches it. Its ambition shows in both its strengths and its flaws. The film earns its middling score honestly, carrying a mix of charm and chaos that never quite settles into greatness.
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