Delightfully fun Mr. Fox

Rating: 8/10 (16 December 2009)

Fantastic Mr. Fox is an adaptation of a somewhat famous children's book by writer Roald Dahl (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was originally written by him). I cannot really say if it's faithful or not (apparently not very much) nor can I say how much it compares to director Wes Anderson's other works (my fan friend says you have lots of his signature touches). However, I can say that it's likely adults will enjoy it more than kids. This is a completely stop-motion picture instead of the more ubiquitous 3d computer graphics showcase. It has a certain retro vibe to it and although it's charming, often funny, you shouldn't expect the animation quality and smoothness of Nightmare Before Christmas or Coraline. The jerkiness is especially noticeable when the animals are dancing. However, the faces and the (constantly moving) fur are especially well done. Actually, I suspect the many close-up shots were used to save on the animation costs of animating the whole puppet. Most importantly, the whole movie using real puppets, props and decors has a solid "realness" quality to it often absent from 3d graphics.
Enough about that. How's the story ? Quite delightful and entertaining with personable characters and bundles of dry and awkward humor that actually works. The running gag of the opossum making swirly eyes when he gets confused never gets old. I also enjoyed variations on the word cuss used profusely instead of the famous f word. The voice acting is top-notch and George Clooney is a perfect fit for the suave and charismatic Mr. Fox. You'll notice his voice but you won't notice most of the other famous voices unless you're a big Wes Anderson fan. The dialogue is very fine and the choice of music is surprising, appropriate and good. Fantastic Mr. Fox is pretty fantastic and because of the way it was made and looks, this might age quite well and become a future classic. Whatever you do, don't let the fact that it's supposed to be a "kid's movie" deter you from watching it. For interested parents, it's not overtly violent although there's poultry killing (heard, not shown) and beyond the amusing antics, it even has some morale (but doesn't hit you over the head with it).
Rating: 8 out of 10