Review by C.J. Bunce
It’s hard to believe it’s been 23 years since Oscar-winning creators Peter Lord and Nick Park had their feature film directing debut with Chicken Run, the highest-grossing stop-motion animated film in history and DreamWorks Animations’ then biggest film. Featuring the voice of Mel Gibson as Rocky Rhodes, a cocky American rooster, and Julia Sawalha as Ginger, a brave rebel trying to save her fellow chickens from a pie making factory, the movie was an unusual box office hit. Some studio changes and shifts and 23 years later its sequel has arrived on Netlfix, Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget, featuring the voices of fan-favorite and frequent voice actor Zachary Levi (Shazam!, Chuck) taking over as Rocky, and BAFTA winner and genre staple Thandiwe Newton (Solo: A Star Wars Story, Mission: Impossible II) as Ginger. The title says it all–the movie is about stakes, like the original–and our feathered friends get in on an unwelcome adventure to save their daughter from a new nearby nugget plant.
Newton and Levi step into the roles and don’t miss a beat. They are a pair with great chemistry. Like mother like daughter: Bella Ramsey (The Last of Us) is the voice of Molly, Ginger and Rocky’s daughter in this coming-of-age story. Rocky and Ginger try to keep the scary world of humans from their daughter on their idyllic island. But Molly wants to know what else is out there. She is more curious than a rebel, and once she leaves she befriends another chicken named Frizzle, who helps her learn more about herself and what she is willing to do to help others. But along the way she reveals a dastardly enterprise, and subjects her family and friends to an old threat.
The story feels like it amps up its darkness from its predecessor as a chicken actually gets killed at the factory, so figure this isn’t the stuff of Shaun the Sheep, but may be more of a subject for older kids to process better. Miranda Richardson (Harry Potter, Muppets Most Wanted) is back as the villainous villainess Mrs. Tweedy, and she is a more horrific villain this round, first by giving mind numbing drugs to chickens at a posh resort, then fitting them with Stepford Wives-esque sci-fi mind controllers.
A series of appended behind-the-scenes shorts explain the difference between the full stop-motion method used for the first film and today’s Aardman, which still uses slowly moved character models on real sets, but quickens the filming process by incorporating computer-generated effects, which the studio has perfected since it first used them for its film Early Man.
The effects get movie audiences in to watch Aardman movies, but you’re kept in your seat with the clever, twisty writing–this time in a script from Karey Kirkpatrick, John O’Farrell, and Rachel Tunnard. One of the best features in Aardman movies is that old British World War I soldier stereotype character–found in Bill Nighy’s Grandsanta in Aardman’s Arthur Christmas, and found here in the form of David Bradley’s Fowler, a former RAF mascot and wise old, savvy, bird. It’s a great way Brits use fantasy to keep the memories of people of ages past alive for new generations.
Directors from the first film, Peter Lord and Nick Park, are back this time as executive producers with ParaNorman’s Sam Fell directing. Voice actors include returning talent Jane Horrocks (Arthur Christmas, Memphis Belle), Imelda Staunton (Harry Potter, Much Ado About Nothing), and Lynn Ferguson (No Angels) as the voices of Babs, Bunty, and Mac. David Bradley (Harry Potter, Doctor Who, The World’s End), Romesh Ranganathan (Cinderella), and Daniel Mays (Ashes to Ashes, Rogie One: A Star Wars Story) replace prior voice cast as Fowler, Nick, and Fetcher. Nick Mohammed (The Martian) and Josie Sedgwick-Davies voice new characters Dr. Fry and Frizzle.
Frequent Aardman collaborator Harry Gregson-Williams (Shrek, The Equalizer, The Meg, Mulan) returns with a superb action-adventure score. Keep an eye out for Easter eggs and throwbacks to past Aardman projects.
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget is another brilliant animated movie for Aardman, with a great story and cutting-edge visuals. It is the perfect companion movie to Blue Sky Studios’ 2017 animated film Ferdinand, reviewed here–the ideal pairing for growing minds with ample doses of action, adventure, and humor.
In case you missed them, take note of our review here of Aardman’s Star Wars animated short, the modern Aardman Christmas classic The Flight Before Christmas here, the sci-fi movie Farmageddon, the historical comedy Early Man, and our discussion of Aardman’s Pirates! Before that, Wallace & Gromit: Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget is streaming now on Netflix.
