The trailers for Monkeybone trumpet that it was made by the creators of The Nightmare Before Christmas, which is making a lot of people think ultra-cool director Tim Burton has something to do with the film.  He doesn't – Burton only produced and co-wrote Nightmare.  The good news is that Monkeybone director Henry Selick, who directed Nightmare and the equally hip James & The Giant Peach, is probably the only person who can even come close to making a Burton-esque film.

Monkeybone's opening credits show an artist creating a cartoon that he hopes will become an integral part of a surprise marriage proposal.  The artist is Stu Miley (Brendan Fraser, Bedazzled), the creator of a popular animated television show about a frenzied, Roger Rabbit-like monkey (it's called "Monkeybone").  Stu is shy, introverted, and totally freaked out by his own success, as evidenced by his discomfort at a public premiere of his latest show.  He's also dead-set against the merchandising of various Monkeybone products, despite the pleadings of his business manager (Dave Foley).

Stu tries to leave the post-premiere party early to pop the big question to his girlfriend, Julie (Bridget Fonda, Lake Placid).  But they're involved in a car wreck (a funny one, if there is such a thing) that leaves Stu in a very Trainspotting-ish coma.  Julie is devastated, but Stu's sister (Will & Grace's Megan Mullally) wants to pull the plug.

The fun really starts when Stu enters his coma world.  It's a nightmarish land of carnival rides, martinis and Rose McGowan in a low-cut cat suit (geez, it sounds really awful).  In this in-between world known as Downtown, people in situations similar to Stu's experience have their nightmares come true.  For Stu, this means Monkeybone (voiced by John Turturro) has become real, and his creation becomes a real pain in the neck, as well.  The chimp hops around like David Arquette on speed and generally makes Stu's life even more miserable.  After all, a cartoon monkey can't really replace somebody like Bridget Fonda.

Without going into too much detail about the story, I'll just say Monkeybone and Stu head back to real life in two different bodies – one of which is a recently deceased organ donor played by Saturday Night Live's Chris Kattan (it's one of the funniest physical comedy bits you'll ever see).  If you don't pay too much attention to the plot, which involves a dream god (Giancarlo Esposito) who tries to increase the world's nightmare output, you should find Monkeybone pretty darn entertaining.

Monkeybone is based on Kaja Blackley's comic book called "Dark Town," which was adapted by Sam Hamm, who has worked on several of Burton's films (including the upcoming Planet of the Apes remake).  Helping to make the picture look like one of Burton's is Sleepy Hollow's production designer Bill Boes.  Monkeybone has sets The Grinch wishes it could have had.  The film effectively blends stop-frame animation with live action, and flaunts visual effects that may not be topped this year.

1:30 -

for crude humor and some nudity