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Chicken Run
review by Zach B.
Rated G
Studio: Dreamworks
Running Time: 89 minutes
With the voices of Mel Gibson, Julia Swahala, Miranda
Richardson
Written by Karey Kirkpatrick
Based on a story by Peter Lord and Nick Park
Directed by Peter Lord and Nick Park
Retail Price: $26.98
Features: Audio Commentary with Peter Lord and Nick
Park, Poultry In Motion: The Hatching Of Chicken Run
featurette, The Hatching Of Chicken Run featurette,
Read-A-Long, Cast and Crew Bios, Production Notes, Egg Hunt,
Panic Button Theatrical Trailers, TV Spot, DVD-ROM
Specs: 1.85:1 Anamorphic Widescreen, 5.1 Dolby Digital
EX, DTS 6.1 ES, English Dolby Surround 2.0, English
Subtitles, Chapter Search
I've always been a huge fan of Aardman Animations. I
loved "Creature Comforts", and I've been a major, major fan
of "Wallace and Gromit" for quite a long time now. So when I
heard Aardman was going to make their first feature length
project, I was ecstatic. When I heard Dreamworks was going
to be in with it and inked a few picture deal with them
(which they later extended), I couldn't be happier (but a
little worried that Dreamworks may dimish their
creativity-thankfully, that did not happen). But I got even
more happy, as "Chicken Run" opened to wonderful critical
acclaim, and became one of the biggest hits of summer 2000,
raking in over 100 million dollars, making the world of
Aardman even more known.
"Chicken Run" follows the escape attempts of the chickens
on Mrs. Tweedy's farm. After numerous escape attempts, it
seems there is no hope at all, depressing what appears to be
the leader of the chickens, Ginger. The chickens have to
produce eggs for Mrs. Tweedy, if not, they fear they might
be her next meal (and that is established perfectly in the
first few minutes of the film). Just as things are looking
their worst, Rocky the Rooster drops in (literally) and
reluctantly helps the chickens by learning how to fly. Rocky
has little to no faith at all, and doesn't want to be a
guiding force or anything, but as things move on, he becomes
part of them. However, Rocky does have a past and he must
come to terms with it... all while helping out the fellow
chickens.
After over two years of development, out hatches (sorry
for the stupid joke) "Chicken Run" a wonderful stop-motion
animated film that is purely Aardman with some high
production values and excellent character and set designs.
Like most Aardman films I've seen, I've gone in expecting
something, and I've gone out completly surprised getting
something much more enjoyable and different. That is the
case with "Chicken Run". Some of the scenes are so well put
together, you may think you're watching a big budget live
action movie. The pie machine and grand finale are simply
brilliant and a joy to watch. The voice acting is top notch
as well. Mel Gibson is wonderful and really appealing as
Rocky, Juila Swahala (Of "AbFab" fame) is great as Ginger,
and Miranda Richardson is so cold and icy as the evil and
diabolical Mrs. Tweedy. The script is also well written,
nothing ever seems dumb or corny but rather intelligent, and
the characters are also well developed. Peter Lord, a long
time Aardman force co-directs along side Nick Park, the
multiple Oscar® winner responsible for "Creature
Comforts" and the "Wallace and Gromit" series. Their
direction is perfect and dead on, and I feel they are the
reason why the movie is so magnificent.
You really have to give credit and admire those involved
in the making of the film. The whole stop motion animated
process used for this film. For those unfamiliar with the
process, it's really time consuming. The models are alligned
a certain way, that frame is shot, the models are moved,
that frame is shot, etc. The models are made of plasticine,
and are incredibly detailed and are exciting to look at.
Building sets and models take a lot of time and patience as
well, and what you see in the film is some top notch
creativity.
What I love so much about "Chicken Run" is how the movie
works. Yes, it may seemed aimed at children, but the film
works for the older ones too. Kids should be satisfied with
the fun characters and easy to follow plot, but there will
be many references and jokes that will fly over their heads,
making the movie work on another level. They're some jokes
about Americans, but what I really enjoyed was the homages
to so many great war films of the past. The ones that come
to mind are "Stalag 17" and "The Great Escape".
If you avoided this film because it seemed geared to
children only, I highly urge you to reconsider this film
because this is a film for all ages. This movie really does
have something for everyone, and over time it's destined to
go down as an animated classic.
I wasn't quite sure what to expect in this catagory. Upon
seeing the film in theaters, the models and sets looked very
sharped on the print, however, some images appeared a bit
soft. I am happy to say this transfer is jaw dropping, and I
couldn't be happier. It is a reference quality disc.
Presented in 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen, I couldn't find a
trace of color bleeding and blacks and shadow levels are
mighty impressive. I did not notice any compression
artifacts whatsoever and there isn't any softness to be
found. The models look really real, they pop right out and
look quite vibrant. Once again, Dreamworks delivers a
transfer that everyone should be content with.
To go along with the sparkling video, Dreamworks puts out
a wonderful soundtrack to go with it. You got your choice of
Dolby Digital 5.1 EX and DTS 6.1 ES (as well as Dolby
Surround 2.0). I basically watched the movie in Dolby
Digital 5.1 Ex and then did some keynote comparisons with
some major, active scenes.
The Dolby Digital 5.1 EX sounds quite nice. John Powell
and Harry Gregson-Williams' fitting musical score is brought
to full life, as it sounds deep and well mixed. Voices are
clear and easy to hear, and the sound effects are great to
listen to. Nothing overpowers anything. If you choose to
listen it to the film on this track, you'll be in for a
treat.
Now, the DTS 6.1 ES is remarkable. I slightly prefer it
over the Dolby Digital, as I found surrounds to be a bit
more aggressive, and the bass is a bit deeper. The track
sounds more even than the Dolby Digital. Just listen to the
climatic finale. The roaring in the air, the screams of the
chickens and the action and suspense around it. You feel
like you're there, you FEEL the tension. So no matter which
track you hear, you'll be in for a nice listen.
Though it's not fully loaded, I'm happy that "Chicken
Run" features an excellent amount of features on DVD which
is sure to please casual viewers and those more into
animation. Let's get crackin' (another stupid joke, sorry.
Get it? eggs crack...), shall we?
Since I am so amazed with Aardman and stop motion
animation, I was really eager to give the Audio
Commentary with Peter Lord and Nick Park a spin. This
commentary is top notch, as the two have a lot to say and
give many insights and behind the scenes stories on the film
and certain scenes. The two also rave about those who helped
make the movie, so if you are interested in the stop motion
animation proccess at all, you'll really benefit from this
track.
Two featurettes are included on the disc, each offering
additional insight on the movie and some behind the scenes
footage. The Hatching Of Chicken Run lasts about
fifteen minutes, as it shows how stop motion works and
offers a nice, brief history of Aardman and on Chicken Run
itself. A good watch if I say so myself. There's also
Poultry In Motion: The Making Of Chicken Run that
lasts about twenty two minutes (I think it was shown on NBC
around the time the movie was released). This shows a little
on stop motion animation, and it includes some stuff on the
voice actors and interviews. It's somewhat fluffy, but still
enjoyable. What I wish is that they included some
storyboards or concept art, or maybe some excerpts from the
wonderful book Chicken Run: Hatching The Movie
(click
the link to buy it and read my review at amazon.com - sorry,
cheap plug). Still, the two featurettes are enjoyable.
Two Theatrical Trailers of the movie have been
included, in anamorphic widescreen and Dolby Digital 5.1 no
less (YAY!). One is more of your standard trailer, while the
other is a clever marketing move that does a rip off of
"Mission: Impossible 2". I don't remember seeing that as a
trailer, but rather as TV Spot. I also know there was
another trailer, sorta like a teaser, which isn't found on
the disc. Oh well. One TV Spot is included as well,
and parodies Dreamworks' own "Gladiator". Also, there is a
trailer of the upcoming CGI Dreamworks movie, Shrek
with Eddie Murphy, Mike Meyers, Cameron Diaz and John
Lithgow. It looks excellent, and I can't wait to see it (too
bad the whole idea of bringing it to IMAX fell through). It
even has some of the "Freaks and Geeks" theme song in the
trailer (love that show... damn NBC for cancelling it! Well,
Dreamworks was the production company that made it.) Anywho,
the Shrek trailer is in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen and
Dolby Digital 5.1. Nice!
A Read-A-Long is on the disc for the kiddies, as
it lasts twenty minutes and uses stills and footage from the
film. Also for kids to have a good time with (or a guilty
pleasure for the older ones to press a few times), might be
the most useless but most fun DVD feature, the "Panic
Button" where when you press it, you get a short clip of
all the chickens screaming. Fun the first time, I guess it's
fun, but not much more than that. Rounding out the disc is
some Production Notes, Cast and Crew Bios, the
usual DVD-ROM material (which includes two fun games,
screensavers, desktop icons and wallpaper for your own
computer) and the "Egg Hunt", which are easter eggs
hidden throughout the menus of the DVD. Can you find all 12?
Everyone reveals a fun fact about the film, and I found this
to be quite spiffy.
This is an excellent movie and Dreamworks has created a
top notch presentation for it. While I wish there could have
been a little more with the supplements, what's included is
statisfying. If you love Aardman or just a plain, fun film
that you'll watch again and again, Chicken Run is for you.
 (4.5/5, NOT included in
final score)
 (5/5)
(4.5/5)
 (3/5)
 (4/5,
NOT an average)
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