Not Quite Brilliant

Rating: 8/10 (5 July 2000)

"Chicken Run" is a charming and enjoyable movie, but reviewers defying Nick Park have gone a bit too far.
Of course the animation is excellent, and I loved the characters. The homages to other films (not just POW flicks, there is a hilarious Star Trek line) will fly be over the heads of the youngsters, but the adults will enjoy them. There is also a truly great moment of self-awareness (listen to Fowler's reason why he can't fly a plane).
My one criticism is that the story dragged in the middle. I would have preferred that they shaved five to ten minutes from the movie and showed one of Nick Park's short films (such as "Creature Comforts") before the feature.