Animation

THE RED TURTLE

Cert PG 81mins Stars 5

Be swept away on waves of imagination by this remarkable animated fable.

Many familiar elements are borrowed from sources such as Robinson Crusoe, and the Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner. But Dutch writer/directer Michael Dudok de Wit crafts something fresh and uniquely wonderful.

It’s visually inspired by Japanese and Chinese art and uses traditional ink and watercolour in an elegant hand drawn style.

Deep currents of love and loss stir beneath the surface of what begins as a traditional adventure story and evolves into a rich exploration of the circle of life.

When an unnamed man is stranded on a tropical island, his attempts to escape on a raft are thwarted by a giant red turtle.

Without a word of dialogue, but with many an exclamatory grunt and cry, their relationship moves from antagonism to understanding.

Beaten to the best animated Oscar by Disney’s more obvious offering, Zootropolis, this is a breathtakingly beautiful, magical and moving experience.

MOLLY MONSTER

Cert U 72mins Stars 3

Wrap yourself up in this warm comfort blanket of a cartoon, aimed with gentle accuracy at the CBeebies crowd.

It’s inventive, charming, and has some sweet songs to jolly the slight story along. There’s a vaguely Sergeant a Pepper vibe to the animation, but lacks the potent menace of the magnificent Blue Meanies.

A green and yellow dragon type of monster, Molly is friendly, brave, kind, and clever.

Left at home when her parents set off to egg island, she decides to follow them, taking only her blue clockwork pet, Edison, for company.

The delightfully absurdist landscape is populated with various quirky creatures to assist along the way. Plus there are mechanical contraptions which would delight Heath-Robinson.

Based on the whimsical books of Swiss illustrator, Ted Sieger, this children’s animation is a quirky affair which tootles along at a soft and pleasant pace.

There’s nothing here to frighten your little monsters.

 

THE BOSS BABY

Cert U 97mins Stars 3

Escape your job and embrace your family with this energetic and colourful animation.

It’s a bold choice to make a kids’ movie whose main plot is a corporate conspiracy and has jokes about ‘yes men’, memos and meetings.

But by throwing in a top drawer cast alongside pirates, dinosaurs, spaceships and an aeroplane load of Elvis impersonators, this romp makes the balance sheet add up.

With the arrival of a baby brother, the perfect world of seven year old Tim Templeton is thrown into disarray.

Tim discovers the suit wearing, memo writing interloper can secretly talk, and describes himself as The Boss Baby.

The script suggests all CEO’s are uncaring career obsessives because they never received enough love as a children. I’m sure those loveable scamps Alan Sugar or Richard Branson could not agree less.

Tim’s parents work for Puppy Co., a global manufacturer of pets toys. The company have hatched a plan to replace children with puppies in the affections of every family around the world.

So the squabbling siblings join forces to restore harmony to the home.

Alec Baldwin, Steve Buscemi, Tobey Maguire and Lisa Kudrow bring their considerable experience to the pint sized cast.

It’s never dull and is a reasonable family diversion during the Easter break. There’s lots of corporate jokes for the adults and there are enough bare bums on show plus vomit and snot, to amuse the little ones.

Tim’s over active imagination is given full flight in a series of fabulous fantasy sequences. Presented in a variety of animation styles, they’re the highlights of the film and as a result, this is best seen in 3D.

I’m surprised to find I enjoyed The Boss Baby as much as I did, mostly because I’m not such a great fan of puppies or babies. Or to be honest, bosses.

 

 

SMURFS: THE LOST VILLAGE

Cert U 90mins Stars 2

The boys in blue are back for another animated adventure, but this time the girls are doing it for themselves.

Following the success of Disney’s female-led adventures such as Frozen, and Zootropolis, this latest ham-fisted Smurf reboot tries to offer a more female friendly experience.

Smurfette leads Brainy, Hefty, and Clumsy into the Forbidden Forest on a journey of self-discovery, where they find a lost village of female Smurfs.

This is an attempt to address a longstanding criticism regarding Smurfette’s status as the only girl in the village. Unfortunately the clumsy script reduces her status from a spare rib to a non-Smurf, saying she was created from a piece of clay by an evil Smurf-hating wizard.

Despite this bizarre twist, it’s generally good natured and filled with slapstick and shenanigans. However all but the youngest of kids will struggle to be entertained, and the patience of parents will be tested to the limit.

 

GHOST IN THE SHELL (2017)

Cert 12A 107mins Stars 2

Beneath the glossy exterior there’s not much spirit to be found in this curate’s egg of a sci-fi action thriller.

A hard working Scarlett Johansson stands at the centre of the spectacular visuals, but even the Avengers star can’t bring the soulless storytelling to boil.

The story is based the acclaimed Japanese cyberpunk comic strip which was followed by a successful big screen animated version in 1995. They were a huge influence on The Matrix, which is why a lot of the ideas here seem very familiar.

This future version of Japan is a neon vision of eye popping CGI. The population pay for cybernetic enhancements to make themselves quicker, stronger, smarter, etc.

Johansson gives a nicely judged mechanical performance as a kick-ass military cyborg known as the Major. She’s a human brain in a synthetic body and possessed of unexplained powers of flight and invisibility.

Investigating the assassination of corporate suits, the Major discovers a secret about her past which causes her to question her mission.

Controversy was caused by the casting of Johansson in the lead role. Giving an Asian role to a caucasian actress has led to accusations of whitewashing.

But technically Johansson is playing a robot, and the film’s Chinese financiers don’t seem to have a problem with it. And anyway, it’s the least of the films problems.

Despite casting one of the worlds most desirable women and encasing her in a nude body suit, this is a remarkably sexless enterprise.

Plus the cardboard cutout characters are dwarfed by the locations and the drama is lost in the scrambled action sequences.

A flat script fails to explore the idea of identity, and the dull dialogue suffers from a severe humour malfunction.

And without love, poetry or anything else to give it humanity, the Ghost In The Shell offers very little of substance.

 

SEOUL STATION

Cert 15 Stars 4

Fast track yourself to the South Korean capital for this bloodthirsty zombie thriller. It’s an animated spin-off of the ferocious live action and must-be-seen Train To Busan.

As a father searches desperately for his daughter while fellow citizens are devoured by the undead, there’s no shortage of surprises, grit or gore.

Featuring homelessness and prostitution, it’s a far from glowing portrait of modern Korea. However the commitment to scathing and subversive social commentary never side lines the delivery of first class thrills.

With strong language and adult themes, this cartoon is not for the kids.

 

BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (2017)

Cert PG 139mins Stars 5

Be spellbound as Emma Watson swaps the wizarding world of Harry Potter for a fairytale featuring a fantastic beast.

Having found global fame as Hogwarts schoolgirl swot, Hermione, Watson takes centre stage in Disney’s big budget, live action adventure. It’s a remake of their own musical from 1991, which was the first animated movie to be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar.

Surrounded by the cream of camp theatricality, and the finest CGI technology, it would be cruel and unfair to suggest Watson is the film’s least animated performer. She is faultless as the bookish, brave and beautiful, Belle.

Dan Stevens is demonically horned and hairy as then Beast. The English actor’s stock has only risen since escaping the upstairs confines of TV’s Downton Abbey.

The story is unchanged. To rescue her father from the frozen castle of the Beast, young Belle sacrifices her own freedom. The majestic monster is really a cursed Prince. He must earn her love or remain a creature forever. And time is running out.

To ensure a box office success, Disney have deployed the full creative might of their empire. There is excellence everywhere, from the superb cast, to sumptuous costumes and detailed design.

From the Oscar wining title track, to the boisterous ‘Gaston’ and the glorious ‘Be Our Guest’, the show stopping tunes are the magic which elevates this above last year’s excellent live action, Cinderella.

Competing for the limelight are old hams and grand dames of the theatre, such as Emma Thompson, Ewan McGregor and Ian McKellen. They breathe life into the castle’s other inhabitants, the talking clock, teapot, candelabra, and so on.

Bill Condon doesn’t direct the film, as much as pilot this jazz handed juggernaut safely into cinemas. It’s far from ground-breaking but it is enchanting, exciting and funny.

Please enjoy this fabulous five star family entertainment. Be our guest.

SPIDER-MAN: INTO THE SPIDER-VERSE

Cert PG 116mins Stars 5

Along comes a Spider-man as you’ve never seen him before in this deliriously entertaining animated spin on your friendly neighbourhood superhero.

Joyous, thrilling and inclusive, it’s a pulsating neon kaleidoscope of jokes, action and invention as several versions of Spider-man team up to save the fabric of the universe being torn apart by the infamous crime lord, Kingpin. 

However this is not the Peter Parker character familiar from the Marvel films and comics, but another version of the web-swinger, Afro-latino schoolboy Miles Morales, and exists independently of the mainstream Marvel Connected Universe of the upcoming Avengers: Endgame.

Rapper and actor Shameik Moore gives a lovely grounded performance as the voice of schoolboy Miles, alongside an impressive cast which includes Oscar winners  Mahershala Ali and Nicolas Cage.

Miles is bitten in time honoured tradition by a radioactive spider but before he can learn to control to his great new powers, he’s given the great responsibility of saving the world from  the effects of a parallel dimensions machine.

Through this window to the multi-verse swing various Spider-types of different genders, styles and species which range from 1930’s noir, to Japanese manga and a sort of Porky Pig figure.

As well as providing a team dynamic and a lot of humour, this solves the problem of  Spidey otherwise having to talk to himself to explain the plot, and proves what a universal and flexible character Spider-man is.

Intent on villainy are a rogues gallery of familiar foes such as Green Goblin and Doc Ock, plus some super-menacing Spanish cyborg scorpion thing.  

It’s produced by Phil Lord and Chris Miller who made 2014’s brilliant The LEGO Movie and they fill this with their fresh and infectious looney tunes-style energy and colour.

And while honouring its humble pulp comic origins they also capture the extraordinary optimism and dynamism of the character as well as offering a touching tribute to the creators, Steve Dikto and the recently departed, Stan Lee.

This reincarnation of their most popular superhero rivals the best of this years live-action superhero adventures, and is the most enjoyable Spider-man film yet.

THE GRINCH

Cert U 90mins Stars 3

Benedict Cumberbatch goes green in this colourful animated family adventure from the makers of the Despicable Me franchise.

It’s based on the 1957 children’s book, How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, by the genius author, Dr Seuss, and the Sherlock star voices The Grinch, a mountain dwelling creature who lives all alone except for his faithful pooch, Max.

Due to having a heart two sizes too small, the Grinch hates Christmas and plans to run it for the happy singing townsfolk of Who-ville, a village which looks like an electric rainbow of Swiss chalets.

Meanwhile a pigtailed poppet called Cindy Lou lives with her hard working single mum and twin baby brothers, and she intends to trap Santa Claus so she can ask him for a very personal Christmas wish.

Cindy Lou is voiced by Cameron Seely, best known as Hugh Jackman’s daughter in the smash hit musical, The Greatest Showman.

As The Narrator, singer Pharrell Williams has nearly as many lines as Cumberbatch, though sadly too many of them have been written especially for the film, while veteran actress Angela Lansbury can be heard in a minor role of as the voice of The Mayor of Who-ville.

Home to everyone’s favourite yellow idiots, the Minions, the Illumination Studio are the same company who produced the 2012 adaptation of Seuss’s masterpiece, The Lorax.

Although it captured Seuss’s unique illustrative style while souping it up with state-of-the-art animation, it included too little of his wonderful whimsical charm and the childish delights of his verse. And this is no different.

Giving the Grinch a hard-luck backstory helps the scriptwriters flesh out the slim source material to a full 90 minutes, and encourages us to sympathise with him.

Mind you, it’s more than possible not to have been raised in an orphanage and hate Christmas songs playing on the radio with the same passion The Grinch does.

Equally under-served is the velvet voiced Cumberbatch who struggles with a strangulated US accent while striving manfully with some of the weakest material of his career, and is often reduced to  just providing yips, yowls and yelps.

However there’s plenty of slapstick and sentiment among the cute animals and crazy contraptions, plus all the fur and clothes look reassuringly warm and cosy in the frozen landscape.

More appealing than Jim Carey’s laboured live-action adaption which appeared 18 years ago, little kids will enjoy this version for its zippy pace, bold colours and daft humour.

 

 

 

 

 

 

MISSING LINK

Cert PG 95mins Stars 4

Hugh Jackman leads an all-star cast to a high old time in the Himalayas in this delightful animated comedy full of family fun and excitement.

With engaging energy and charm the Aussie actor plays a 19th century English aristocratic adventurer searching for the missing link between humans and apes.

A sighting of the legendary Sasquatch in the US leads to a madcap whistle-stop journey by steamship, locomotive, stagecoach and elephant, from the Wild West to the fabled city of Shangri-La.

Along for the ride are Zoe Saldana and Zach Galifianakis, with wonderful support from Brits Emma Thompson and David Walliams.

Astonishing heights of craftsmanship mix the richly detailed texture of traditional stop-motion animation with beautiful CGI vistas to glorious effect.

The producers were deservedly Oscar nominated in 2017 for their wonderful fable, Kubo and the Two Strings, and though this more mainstream adventure feels a tiny evolutionary step backwards by their lofty standards, it’s still a wonderful early Easter treat.