Truly Fantastic! One of the best family films (and one of the year's best!)

Rating: 10/10 (24 November 2009)

FANTASTIC MR. FOX (2009) **** (VOICES OF: George Clooney, Meryl Streep, Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Wallace Wolodarsky, Eric Chase Anderson, Michael Gambon, Willem Dafoe, Owen Wilson, Jarvis Cocker, Karen Duffy, Brian Cox, Adrien Brody) Truly – well, fantastic – animated adaptation of Roald Dahl's children's lit classic as envisioned by filmmaker Wes Anderson (who co-wrote with Noah Baumbach and actually provides a voice talent too) about sly, wry Mr. Fox (equally wry and sly Clooney, his voice as welcome as a blanket on a snowy winter's night) whose days of chicken rousting are numbered when he backpedals from his domestic bliss with wife & teen son (Streep & Schwartzman equally cozy tones) to abscond with poultry from three community farmers (read: villains) and the consequences unleashed upon his animal community with impunity. Fast, fun and sharply etched with fine comedic bravado throughout (thank you again Bill Murray for your insouciant vocals) and a truly amazing tour-de-force for the stop-motion animators and production design by Nelson Lowry (seriously should be considered for an Oscar) with its autumnal palette and homemade puppetry look (waycool how everything bristles to life!) One of my faves of the year and one of the best family films of the year too boot; hell one of the year's best!