Enjoyable

Rating: 7/10 (25 November 2003)

Kind of a pedestrian concept, but nicely executed by Aardman animation. I don't think the film would have nearly as funny in cel animation or computer animation; claymation gives the characters more, well, character.
Aardman's character designs are consistently a big boost to the enjoyability of all their films, from the near-abstract characters in Rex the Runt to the sheep of Wallace and Gromit, and now these teapot-shaped chickens. Much of the physical humor wouldn't have come across nearly so well with a different chicken design.
It's odd; the trivia section reports that Gibson recorded his dialogue in the U.S., while the rest of the cast recorded in the UK. It seemed to be, while watching the film, that he wasn't really part of the cast. He didn't seem to have as much depth of personality as even most of the 'supporting' chickens did, and far less than the rats. Maybe it was his voice. I heard that voice and saw Mel Gibson. When I heard the other characters speak, I saw chickens or rats or farmers. Maybe it's an argument against having one A-list star in an animated movie, when the rest of the cast is largely unknown (to American audiences; I'd be intrigued to know if UK viewers thought the same way).
Still, a wonderful, funny film, well worth a rental or even adding it to the collection.