Wallace & Gromit: The First Three Adventures (1990-1995)

Rating:
Summary: Be careful
Review: Be careful. Yes, this is a DVD, and a great one to boot, but you can buy the VHS tape in any $1 store anywhere. I am not quite sure it is worth the $15 price tag, or the crazy amount the collector's are trying to seel you for. Beware.

Rating:
Summary: Nicky Says....
Review: I am a huge fan of animation, but never really watched any claymation films. Honestly I bought this dvd because I recognized it as an out of print title and I wanted to give it a try. I am glad I did because now I love it. Wallace is an inventor and Gromit is his dog. They own a Wash and Go window cleaning service. Included in this set are the first 3 films by Nick Park, with some earlier shorts by Park and some behind the scenes stuff. It really is a good dvd if you like this kind of thing. In the first film, A Grand Day Out, Wallace builds a rocket to get them to the moon, which as everyone knows is made of cheese. In the second, The Wrong Trousers, a penguin takes control of a pair of cyber trousers Wallace invented in order to pull off a jewel heist. Lastly, A Close Shave involves Wallace and Gromit stopping a sheepnapping dog.Here Gromit is framed for murder and it is up to the sheep and Wallace to help him out.

Altogether the three films presented here are fun to watch. My favorite of them is The Wrong Trousers. The earlier shorts by Park that are included are cool I guess, but very strange. Maybe I think that because I have never watched many shorts in this genre. The comedy here is of the British variety and it works well. To conclude, I recommend this to animation fans or to anyone who wants something the whole family can enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Nick Park is the undisputed master of claymation.
Review: I've seen most of Nick Park's work, and it's all worth seeing. Chicken Run is clearly his best, and ranks as one of the best animated movies of all time. Wallace and Grommitt set the standard for claymation.

These films have a British sensibility to them (i.e. dry wit), so don't expect the fast and furious delivery you get in a lot of American (i.e. ADHD) animation.

It's also nice to have somebody demonstrate it doesn't ALL have to be computer animated.