Poultry in Motion

Rating: 9/10 (15 February 2018)

Chicken Run is, quite honestly, an egg-cellent work of comedy, and a movie that impressed me a lot more than I expected it to, and I highly recommend watching it if you haven't already.
I don't like summary, but to talk about it I should probably at least outline the film: it takes place on a chicken farm that is portrayed as a prison from the view of the chickens, who make up the bulk of the characters in the film. The movie is about the chickens and their various attempts to escape.
Ok, barebones summary out of the way, the movie does a bunch of things that blew me away and really impressed me. The first of these, and the most immediately apparent, is the visual style of the movie: it is entirely claymation. Now, the only times I had seen claymation used before, I...wasn't impressed with it. However, the way they do claymation in Chicken Run is amazing, in that it is simply so expressive and detailed. The love and hard work that the creators of the movie had poured into the clay figures was immediately apparent with how detailed they looked, in spite of their simple, cartoonish, looks--it honestly felt like I was watching a 3D version of one of the Saturday morning cartoons I watched as a kid. The amount of different poses, expressions, and even effects that the filmmakers were able to do astounded me, and honestly endeared me to this style of animation.
Beyond that though, the thing that I loved most about this film--and the aspect of the film that makes it stand out as much as it does--is the STELLAR writing in the film. I went in expecting a simple movie that was clearly intended for kids, and as a result the movie took me for one hell of a ride. This movie had me scared, mad, and sobbing at various points throughout, and even more often had me tearing up in laughter--but even better, I was invested in what was happening, a lot more than I am with more recent films. And honestly, this was due to the writing. The characters in the film, some of them one-notes though they may be, honestly felt so articulate and alive at times, and this was emphasized by the stellar voice work (the accent work fit each and every character to a T). I found myself getting so engrossed in their plight, and rooting for their success the entire time, and it was absolutely fantastic. Hell, I even was invested in the romance between Ginger and Rocky, as out of place as a romance subplot was in this movie--and normally I loathe out-of-place romantic subplots. But the best part is that I felt each and every character was done right, even the one-notes. For example, the antagonists were written to work perfectly with each other, and despite being farmers as the villains, still struck me with fear. The bumbling, fumbling, dunderhead that was Mr. Tweedy was an excellently-written foil to the dastardly and diabolical Mrs. Tweedy, yet even in scenes where Mr. Tweedy was the only antagonist present, he still felt menacing--something I applaud, honestly. I was also endeared to the other characters; from the silliness of the hens to the military rigidity of Ginger's father, to the rats, who were simultaneously lovable and hateable, I found myself loving each and every one of them.
The biggest praise that I can give to this movie, and the greatest testament I can provide that speaks to how good it is, is that even after watching it once I not only am able to applaud it so much, but also truly wish to applaud it. It is an excellent film, and I highly recommend it.