Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins (2009)

The story of how Mystery Inc. was formed.

Director:

Brian Levant

Writers:

Daniel Altiere, Steven Altiere

Stars:

Kate Melton, Hayley Kiyoko, Robbie Amell

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Kate Melton	...	Daphne
Hayley Kiyoko	...	Velma
Robbie Amell	...	Fred
Nick Palatas	...	Shaggy
Frank Welker	...	Scooby Doo (voice)
Shawn Macdonald	...	Principal Deedle
Garry Chalk	...	Vice Principal Grimes
Leah James	...	Prudence Prufrock
Brian J. Sutton	...	Ezekial Gallows (as Brian Sutton)
Al Rodrigo	...	Ezekial Gallows (voice)
Dee Jay Jackson	...	Bus Driver
C. Ernst Harth	...	Janitor
Lorena Gale	...	Librarian
Devon Thomas	...	Beefy Jock
David Hurtubise	...	Mr. Pupperman (as Dave Hurtubise)

Storyline

The story of how Mystery Inc. was formed.

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Plot Keywords:

prequel | third part | castle thunder | part computer animation | teenage girl | 

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Taglines:

From the director of 'Beethoven' and 'The Flintstones', learn the Who, What, Where, When and HOWL of Mystery Inc. (DVD)

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some mild peril

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA Canada

Language:

English

Release Date:

13 September 2009 (USA)

Also Known As:

Scooby Doo 3

Filming Locations:

Cloverdale, Surrey, British Columbia, Canada

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Premiere,Cartoon Network

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 82 min (DVD)

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Coolsville is in Erie County in Ohio, which is in the easternmost part of Northwest Ohio, approximately 1 hour southeast of Toledo, and approximately 1 hour west of Cleveland.

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Goofs

In the scene in the library before the ghosts appear, it starts to get really cold. Shaggy breathes and you can see his breath. However, when the others in the room speak, you can't see theirs.

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Quotes

Fred: So, the Bears really slaughtered those Dolphins last night, huh?
Shaggy: What? That's terrible! Who in their right mind would bring bears to the beach?

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Connections

References The Huckleberry Hound Show (1958)

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Soundtracks

American Jig
from House of Wax (1953)
Written by David Buttolph

User Reviews

Breakout Vehicle

And it's not the Mystery Van....

The star of this movie is the scene-stealing Hayley Kiyoko, who has that sure-fire combo of a pretty face that's rubbery enough for broad comedy. There's no doubt that this DVD is her calling card to Big Things.

I like this iteration of the series despite its creaky gags, thin plot and underwhelming visual effects. The four human characters imbue the film with an infectious, bubbly chemistry.

The plot unfolds so rapidly you won't have time to fret over its flaws. Many of the gags, for instance, were old when they were done in Mack Sennett comedies. And some of the details may irk "Scooby" purists, such as Fred's dark hair this time around. On the other hand, there are a number of amusing back-story gags -- for instance, three of the characters are too young to drive. So guess which one has his license because he's been held back a couple of grades.

As for the special effects, the rendering of the title character puts him in the Salem the cat league ("Sabrina the Teenage Witch") -- cheesiness is part of the fun. When I caught this movie, I happened to be watching ABC's "Kingdom Hospital" miniseries, which features a remarkably lifelike anteater character. It crossed my mind that the money that went into creating that anteater was probably four or five times the budget for this entire motion picture.

"Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins" also provides a lot of material for drinking games here. Take a gulp every time you see Velma's knees, every time Shaggy says "Zoinks," every time you understand one of Scooby's lines -- you get the idea.