This movie came out in June and I’m surprised there is no other mention of it here because this movie is hilarious!
It’s done in a kind of claymation by Nick Park and associates, the same man responsible for the terrific Wallace and Gromit shorts. (If you haven’t seen those, do so, by all means DO SO! They first three were once shown together on PBS during one of its pledge drives, and they made sitting through the pleas for money bearable.)*
Anyway, this movie is terrific. Set in a chicken farm in post-WW2 Britain, the chickens are desperate to get out, lest they be killed for not producing eggs. The farm looks EXACTLY like Stalag 17, with barbed wire fences, chicken coops that look like barracks and vicious guard dogs. There are two rats who are expert at scrounging things up the chickens need to make their escape devices. One escape plan involves digging a tunnel that looks EXACTLY like the one in The Great Escape.
None of the plans ever come to fruition, however. One day, though, an American Rhode Island Red rooster literally falls out of the sky. (Named “Rocky,” he is voiced by Mel Gibson.) Thinking he can fly, the chickens beg him to teach them how to fly. Not wanting to dash their hopes (and hoping he can score a free meal and perhaps some love), he agrees.
But meanwhile, the evil Mrs. Tweedy has decided to get out of the egg business and go into the chicken pot-pie business. Instead of killing the chickens occaisionally, she will now kill ALL of them to make her pies…
The characters stand out as individuals, both in personality and in appearance; you never mistake one for another. (One stand-out is the chicken who engineers the chcikens’ plans. She has a Scottish accent that is nearly unintelligible by American ears.)
The script is full of funny one-liners. The elderly English rooster looks Rocky over and declares, “I don’t like him! His eyes are too close together!” (This is funny because EVERY character has eyes that are close together.) At one point, the chickens’ escape machine (I won’t describe it too much; you have to see it.) is on its way, the leader calls for more power and the Scottish engineer says, “I’m givin’ her all she’s got! I canna change the laws o’ physics, Captain!” When the chickens are about to get away, Mrs. Tweedy jumps onto their machine and someone yells, “It’s a cling-on!”
Ya gotta love a movie that mixes claymation chickens, The Great Escape and Star Trek.
It’s rated “G”, but we adults can see it without the kids and have a great time.
*If you wanna know more about Wallace and Gromit, I’ll make another post.