Excellent movie for both adults and children

Rating: 9/10 (24 July 2000)

Wow! As a fan of the Wallace and Gromit animations, I had high expectations for this film. I was not disappointed. Nick Park and Peter Lord have created an ideal film for both adults and children. This film has both dramatic and comedic elements clearly intended to be appreciated by adults, along with plenty of references to classic POW films such as The Great Escape and Stalag 17 (and even some Star Trek references toward the end.) For the children, there are the talking chickens and rats, and plenty of slapstick comedy and action sequences to keep them glued to their seats (this I know for certain, as I took my 4-year-old nephew Evan and eight-year-old niece Lauren, and even my normally-squirming nephew sat mesmerized during the final escape sequence.) Even the one bit likely to scare small children (one of the chickens is taken to the chopping block) takes place mostly off-camera, and neither my niece nor my nephew seemed bothered by it.
If you're not familiar with Nick Park's other work, see this movie and then go find his Wallace and Gromit animations. If you're at all squeamish about seeing a 'G' rated film, borrow some kids and take them to see it. But by all means see this film -- we need to encourage the development of more quality films for children (as well as adults) such as this one!
Rating: 9 out of 10