Chicken Run

Rating:
Summary: Chicken FUN!
Review: "Chicken Run" (the latest from Aardman Studios, the makers of the 'Wallace and Gromit' films) is simply the most delightful, visually amazing, and FUN animated movie since Disney's "The Lion King." Other studios (notably Warner Brothers) have tried to take a bite out of Disney's pie-share of the kid-movie market, but Aardman and Dreamworks have done it best in this charming, hilarious, and edge-of-your-seat thrilling animated fantasy about a group of hens trying to break out of a chicken farm. Running the farm with an evil eye and an iron ax are the villainous Mrs. Tweedie and her henpecked (literally) husband, who's sure those chickens are plotting escape. The voices are perfect, from Julia Sawalha and Joan Horrocks from "Absolutely Fabulous" as chickens to Mel Gibson as the "flying" rooster Rocky. I want to recommend that every parent take their kids to see this one: unlike many other recent cartoons, this one is completely suitable for all but the very youngest children (there's some tense moments in a chase at the end, and a little threatening to the chickens with an ax), but even better, this will delight and amuse the adults with its clever animation, perfect voice-casting, witty visual allusions to famous movies like "The Great Escape," "The Bridge over the River Kwai," and "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and Indiana Jones-type thrills that range from a chase inside an automatic chicken pie-making machine to a dramatic and climatic escape that is reminiscent of, but even improves on, the high-energy chase sequences of Aardman's "Wallace and Gromit" films. The moral lessons (you can succeed better with teamwork; stand by your friends) are pointed but gentle, without hitting kids over the head. I can't recommend this one highly enough, folks, whatever age you are. And if you head out of the theater and go eat a chicken pot pie, you have a much, much, harder heart than mine!

Rating:
Summary: Not funny?
Review: All those 1 star reviews claim that the movie was bad and not funny. Well, the first time was about to see it I thought it would be funny. It had quite a few funny moments but overall I got impression that it was rather sad (but optimistic). Then I realized that I liked it that way.
Technically, it is perfect, even in the era of 3D animated movies.
Chickens are not your prime target of any movies, but this is THE chicken movie to own. Funny and sad at the same time, if you think about it.

P.S: my usual comment for amazon reviewers. Before you claim that this or that movie is THE worst you ever saw, think twice. It might imply that you indeed have seen VERY few movies in your life, or that you are just talking bull. Can you seriously claim that a particular movie is the WORST movie you have ever seen? I don't know about you, but it would take me some serious thinking to come up with a SINGLE WORST movie I ever watched. Unless you are a Tibetian Monk, you probably did not think it through. It might be bad, but is it the worst?

Rating:
Summary: A good childrens flick!
Review: Chicken Run is a very interesting and creative movie. The animation is great and the plot, a mix between Stalug 17 and Hogan's Heros, is imaginative and witty. If this movie has any issues is that it seems to be aimed specifically at children and doesn't have even a hint of humor that could maintain an adults interest for long. This doesn't make this a bad movie, just not as good as it could be.

The movie starts out with an initial jail (coop?) break led by Ginger, the main character. As what becomes common place in the early parts of the plot, she gets caught and is put in "solidarity" confinement. After many attempts a "flying rooster", recently escaped from the circus, drops in. Ginger gets the false impression that Rocky can really fly and blackmails him into trying to teach the hens to fly. This is probably the most entertaining and humorous part of the movie. Of course there is the important "save the life of the female lead" scene, the "falling in love" scene, the "male lead leaving without saying good bye" scene, and of course the final "hero returns to save them all" scene.

Overall, this is an enjoyable movie for children, and adults would enjoy it too if taking children to it. Just be forwarned, if you're an adult and would be going alone, pass on this one. There are better "childrens" flick that will keep your attention (Rocky & Bulwinkle).

Rating:
Summary: Laugh, Think again, Marvel on it... laugh...
Review: DreamWorks' unvbelievably crafty and doubleplusgood stop-animated hit `Chicken Run' provides enough originality of concept and expertise of execution to score as fun, high-spirited entertainment for the whole family.

Deliciously reminiscent of the 1981 classic BBC series "Tenko", (a tale of british female POWS in WWII), 'Chicken Run' cleverly envisions a British poultry farm as a barbed-wired camp in which a group of animated hens and one retired RAF rooster are trapped in a life of hopeless, egg-producing servitude. When the owners of the farm decide to up their profits by converting their operation to a chicken pie manufacturing plant, Ginger, the feisty, levelheaded hen who harbors visions of a glorious life beyond the confines of this hellish prison, decides it is time for the ladies to band together and find a way to escape once and for all.

Meanwhile, into their lives drops Rocky the Flying Rooster, a wisecracking American circus performer whose head is easily turned by the attention such a singular stud naturally receives from a coop full of love-starved females. Together, these unlikely heroes and heroines plan and scheme their big break, encountering various setbacks and thwarting multitudinous dangers along the way.

As a piece of animation, 'Chicken Run' is truly outstanding. Opting for traditional animated puppetry rather than drawn cel animation or even computer-generated graphics, the creators of 'Wallace and Gromit' (Peter Lord and Nick Park) do a remarkable job of creating an assortment of characters whose movements are fluid and whose appearance borders on the surrealistic. In short, these are not `realistic' looking chickens - all the better to enhance the otherworldly quality of the film's setting. The carefully crafted sets and backgrounds represent a similar triumph in the areas of attention to detail and establishment of mood.

The movie is, quite simply, a joy to look at from beginning to end, and it is gratifying to know that filmmakers can buck the recent trend towards full scale computer animation and still produce a film that looks this impressive.

Just as important, Karey Kirkpatrick has provided a script filled with clever one-liners, finding just the right balance of acerbic wit and heartwarming sentiment. In addition, every single voice, including [absolutely] fabulous Julia Sawalha as heorine Ginger, Miranda Richardson as cool, calculating Mrs. Tweedy, Jane Horrocks as lovely, featherhead Babs, "Shakespeare in Love's" Imelda Staunton as Bunty, the Stepford Hen and delicious Lynn Ferguson as Mac (you haven't lived if you haven't heard her speak, gorry!), sounds perfectly right in the context of the character assigned to it.

All in all, 'Chicken Run' certainly is one of the great works of animation done recently and it certainly will stand as one of the best such films of our times.

Rating:
Summary: RUN and see Chicken Run...
Review: I don't know quite what I expected when I saw this movie, but I have to say, that despite its theme, the humor was definitely NOT just for children. I was originally hoping it to be polished and neatly produced (similar to the fantastic Toy Story movies) but you can only do so much when it comes to clay-mation. Well with that said, 'Chicken Run' was truly a delight. The jokes were on a childrens level--PART of the time...SOMETIMES the jokes were outright WAY over the heads of children--nothing dirty mind you, but the producers also realized what Disney figured out a few years back: 'Sure, it might be considered a kids film, but there are going to be a LOT of adults that see this, too--and you simply CANNOT ignore them anymore'.

TRYING to escape from a chicken's version of a concentration camp (the similarities are hilarious) and the motto of those running the camp: "NOBODY escapes!" All of the characters are funny, especially the knitting lady who wonders about the chickens who disappeared by asking, "Did they go on holiday?" The first time I saw an animated film with the voice of Mel Gibson I hated it, I hated, hated, HATED IT!! 'Course I'm talking about the abysmal 'Pocohontas' and while watching it I just COULDN'T help but think of Gibson's face every time his character spoke...I was afraid that was also going to be the case here, but thank heavens that isn't what happened at ALL. In fact I completely forgot about Gibson almost immediately. This is not just fun for children, but VERY worthwhile for adults as well. Grab it while ya can and you will most likely see it over and over.

Rating:
Summary: Chicken FUN!
Review: Last night, I was lucky enough to attend a sneak preview of this new adventure from Aardman Studios (makers of the "Wallace and Gromit" films), so let me be the first (but definitely not the last) to say that "Chicken Run" is simply the most delightful, visually amazing, and FUN animated movie since Disney's "The Lion King." Other studios (notably Warner Brothers) have tried to take a bite out of Disney's pie-share of the kid-movie market, but Aardman and Dreamworks have done it best in this charming, hilarious, and edge-of-your-seat thrilling animated fantasy about a group of hens trying to break out of a chicken farm. Running the farm with an evil eye and an iron ax are the villainous Mrs. Tweedie and her henpecked (literally) husband, who's sure those chickens are plotting escape. The voices are perfect, from Julia Sawalha and Jane Horrocks from "Absolutely Fabulous" as chickens to Mel Gibson as the "flying" rooster Rocky. I want to recommend that every parent take their kids to see this one: unlike many other recent cartoons, this one is completely suitable for all but the very youngest children (there's some tense moments in a chase at the end, and a little threatening to the chickens with an ax), but even better, this will delight and amuse the adults with its clever animation, perfect voice-casting, witty visual allusions to famous movies like "The Great Escape," "The Bridge over the River Kwai," and "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and Indiana Jones-type thrills that range from a chase inside a automatic chicken pie-making machine to a dramatic and climatic escape that is reminiscent of, but even improves on, the high-energy chase sequences of Aardman's "Wallace and Gromit" films. The moral lessons (you can succeed better with teamwork; stand by your friends) are pointed but gentle, without hitting kids over the head. I can't recommend this one highly enough, folks, whatever age you are. And if you head out of the theater and go eat a chicken pot pie, you have a much, much, harder heart than mine!

Rating:
Summary: An Entertaining Film; Truly For All Ages!
Review: Peter Lord and Nick Park's CHICKEN RUN (2000) is truly a film for all ages. Produced by Mel Gibson, it is about how a stray American rooster, Rocky (voiced by Gibson himself) comes to the aid of a group of chickens at the sinister Tweedy Chicken Farm, who are trying to escape before they can be made into pies. On its surface, this story would appear to be rather simplistic; however, it is witty, funny, entertaining, intelligent and interesting. In short, it is everything that most G-rated animated films aren't today. Peter Lord and Nick Park, co-creators of the popular British Claymation "Wallace and Gromit" series, have outdone themselves in crafting a feature film that is both visually stunning and extremely well-written.

CHICKEN RUN makes use of numerous film references, especially from THE GREAT ESCAPE (1963), STALAG 17 (1953) and RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (1981). All are cleverly interwoven with the story. The vocal performances are excellent, especially from Julia Sawalha as Ginger (the hen leader), Jane Horrocks as Babs (Ginger's bubbleheaded best friend) and Miranda Richardson as the evil Mrs. Tweedy. If the names of the first two (and their voices) sound familiar to you, no doubt you'll recognize that they are Saffy and Bubble, respectively, from "Absolutely Fabulous"; arguably the greatest British comedy series of all time. As for the male voices in CHICKEN RUN: Tony Haygarth is hilarious as the dimwitted Mr. Tweedy, the always-great (and Mike Leigh favorite) Timothy Spall is the hapless Nick and, of course, Mel Gibson is funny and charming as Rocky 'The Flying Rooster'.

CHICKEN RUN has modern Claymation that is absolutely amazing compared to the old shows such as "Davey and Goliath" or "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" or "A Year without Santa Claus," etc. To cop a phrase, this isn't your dad's Claymation! Instead, it is a wonderful feast for eyes both young & old, with humor that adults can appreciate. This project started as a labor of love for all those involved, and turned into one of the best films of 2000.

MOST RECOMMENDED

Rating:
Summary: Chicken Run
Review: The creators of the British animated classic "Wallace and Gromit" bring their magic to a full length feature. It's an ingenious little adventure that follows the hopes and dreams of a chicken named Ginger (Julia Sawalha). Her dream is to escape Mrs. Tweedy's chicken farm. She claims she can do it on her own but what bewilders her is that she is afraid for all her fellow fowl within the coop. So their plan focuses upon all of them in one huge jail-break. Ginger's prayers seem to be answered when a "flying" rooster named Rocky (Mel Gibson) drops into the coop after escaping a traveling circus. Meanwhile Mrs. Tweedy (Miranda Richardson) develops a plan to turn her little farm into a massive "chicken pot pie" factory forcing Ginger and Rocky to teach all the others to fly before they become pies. What makes "Chicken Run" so ingenious was how the animators made us want to be apart of the chicken world. We fall head over heals involved with these chickens and their daily lives. Coupled with that involvement, "Chicken Run" also cleverly delivers us into a "prison breakout" movie filled with humor, and excitement. "Chicken Run" is a pure delight. For many people this will be their first experimentation with a full length animated feature involving clay. The clay for me helps reflect the tones and dimensions of the characters. In some ways I think it aids a lot in the audience's involvement in the chicken world. Placing aside the claymation and those magnificent machines, "Chicken Run" also brings back a lot of classic Hollywood moments in the films setting. There are scenes which remind us a lot of the classic World War 2 prison movies. Films like the "Great Escape", "Stalag 17" and even the misadventures of "Hogan's Heroes". What I liked about those film references here is that they weren't here to poke fun at the films but to play homage. The references also aid the audience in diving deeper into the film and its delight. If you remember "Wallace and Gromit" then you may recall all their huge machines which helped enchant their everyday lives. From the rocket-ship to the sheep shearing machine, "Chicken Run" has these kinds of machines which have always amazed me in their transformation and assembly. How do they dream up these wondrous machines? (4.5 of 5) So Says the Soothsayer.