In the absence of a (decent) feel-good
action caper in 2005 – Spielberg
turning his efforts to darker pastures, and Batman – although
superb - was hardly ‘cheery’ was he? – it seems the
mantle of high-octane adventure, comic partnerships, and glib one-liners
fell to the shoulders of one man and his dog; i.e. the irrepressible
Wallace & Gromit.
Not that Wallace & Gromit were new to adventures, see… their
previous outings saw them foil an evil criminal (penguin) mastermind;
being falsely accused of murder (of a sheep); building a rocket and flying
to the moon (made of cheese); and bagging two Oscars (plus one Nomination)
for Best Animated Short (creator Nick Park taking another Oscar for Creature
Comforts) along the way.
Curse of the Were-Rabbit being W & G’s first feature-length
voyage, Aardmen Animations and Nick Park decided to yield and allow American
entertainment colossus DreamWorks SKG to help smooth over the arduous
production. And smooth it is; Curse’s ambitious animation, story,
comedy, adventure and blockbuster-style camerawork come across as a sly
in-joke to W & G’s humble genesis (Nick Park originally creating
the pair as a University assignment), allowing W & G to reach new
plateaus of brilliance. Important also, is that the addition of DreamWorks
into the production mix has not taken away the duo’s eccentric
British-ness - fundamental to the character’s appeal -, in fact,
it allows for the regional flavourings of Wallaby Street to be accentuated,
creating more characters, sets, and wonderfully shot action-sequences.
As impeccable as in the animation is, it never allows itself to become
too slick, part of its charm is providing incredible venture and hilarity;
all the whilst giving a sly acknowledgement that, yes, you’re being
entertained by clay. However, it’s the first-rate story and tidy-script,
which makes the film worthy of a five-star rating; Wallace & Gromit:
Curse… has more excitement, jaunt and laughs-per-minute than any
other movie in a long, long time. Operating under a Universal certification
can be something of a tightrope walk for films, particularly in the humour
stakes; the story and humour must be accessible enough for the youngest
of children, whilst it must also be engaging and intelligent enough to
keep adults involved. Push too far in either direction and the film will
fall off onto it’s face, knocking out its box-office teeth. Wallace & Gromit
however, gleefully skips and cartwheels across this tightrope, all the
while juggling triangular-chunks of Wensleydale and a packet of Jacob’s
Crackers.
Unlike its Oscar-nominated counterpart; Tim Burton’s
Corpse Bride, Curse… never makes too much of the vocal-talent
on display. Peter Sallis; the spiritual voice of Nick Park’s creation,
(and of course, Wallace) makes his most energetic case yet; as does Helena
Bonham Carter as the ginger-wigged Lady Tottingham (call her ‘Totty’),
and Peter Kay as PC Mackintosh is an inspired bit of casting. Bonham
Carter also provided the voice for Corpse Bride’s Bride, but has
much-more fun here, and Ralph Fiennes’ dastardly Victor Quatermaine
could be a fat-bodied creation of Burton’s… Yet if the two
films were to go head-to-head in a stop-motion battle-royale (let’s
hope they do), Gromit’s quick thinking and incredibly articulate
eyebrows may prove too much for Corpse’s Victor Van Dort to handle.
(He’s
got a glass-jaw anyway, so I hear).
If the word ‘humour’ or its close friends are used excessively
throughout this review, it is simply to give an accordance to just how
funny Curse of the Were-Rabbit is. Most comedy films coast along on one
or two amusing gags, milking them for all their worth, but W & G
practically sparkle with just how many funny-buttons it presses in its
short 83 minutes. Whether it be the abundance of references to An American
Werewolf in London, Ben-Hur, King Kong or the Hammer Horror films; the
perfect physical and comical timing; or the impressive array of vegetable-based
innuendo and one-liners (“kiss my arrrr-tichoke”) it hits
every mark it aims for.
There is something inherently guiltless and appealing about Aardmen /
Park animations; particularly Wallace & Gromit. Their lidless eyes
and perma-smiles sit perfectly in the form of Saturday afternoon matinee. Curse
of the Were-Rabbit, is the perfect family film; the characters are lovable,
the story and execution is superb, the action is thick and fast, and
the humour is strong enough to tickle even the most despondent family
member… George Lucas created Indiana Jones for these reasons.
Move over Dr. Jones; enter Wallace & Gromit.