From the animators who gave us Wallace and Gromit - only this time it's CGI and not plasticine.
Flushed Away is a new British CGI animated movie about a posh rat by the name of Roddy living in the rich Kensington area of London whose life is disrupted when a common sewer rat arrives at his home via the kitchen sink.
When he tries to flush the unwelcome guest down the toilet, Roddy ends up being flushed down instead after the sewer rat pushes him in.
As he explores the sewers - Ratropolis - he meets some new friends.....and enemies including a (obviously French) character known as Le Frog.
The movie has the voices of some well-known British actors and actresses, include Kate Winslet, Shane Richie (famous for starring in London soap opera "Eastenders") and Sir Ian McKellen who plays the gruesome Toad.
Flushed Away
Could it become a successful British animated film?
Scenes from the British animated movie "Flushed Away".
About the movie....as written by an American who's of the impression that foreigners - particularly inward-looking Americans - might not "get" British humour and culture. He also finds it strange that a movie set in the London sewers has characters who all have British, rather than American, accents.
Roddy (Hugh Jackman) is a refined rat, living a life of comfort and luxury in an upscale Kensington flat in London. One day, when a common sewer rat named Syd (Shane Richie) intrudes on his lifestyle via the bathroom sink, Roddy attempts to eliminate the unwelcome pest by trying to flush him down the toilet. His scheme to lure Syd into the toilet by telling him it’s a lavish whirlpool bath backfires when the clever guest pushes Roddy in instead. As one might expect, Roddy gets flushed down to the underground sewers, a world very much unlike his own. As he explores this universe, also known as Ratropolis, he encounters a female rat named Rita (Kate Winslet), who is a sewer boat captain. She is an entrepreneur – always looking for new ideas that will give her the opportunity to leave the London cesspool behind for the glorious Parisian sewers. One of the inhabitants of the sewage tunnels is the gruesome Toad (Ian McKellen), who despises all rodents and wants them eliminated. After his two henchmen Spike (Andy Serkis) and Whitey (Bill Nighy) fail their assignment to make Rita and Roddy disappear, Toad has to consider more drastic alternatives. He sends for his cousin, Le Frog (Jean Reno), a dreadful and ruthless mercenary.
What to Expect:
Flushed Away will be a product of collaboration between Aardman Animations and DreamWorks. Aardman is the studio responsible for those distinctly characteristic claymation films like Wallace & Gromit. However, this is not the first time they will work together with DreamWorks since the two actually teamed up for the excellent Chicken Run, which marked the first ever claymation full-length feature film, and last year’s Oscar winning Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit. Flushed Away will retain the trademark style and characterization of those movies, but DreamWorks is pushing the animation in a new direction. While it will still look like claymation, it will actually be computer generated. David Bowers and Sam Fell both possess experience in animated features and both have worked on Aardman productions previously so they should have the right sensibilities for the project, however, neither director has worked on a full-length feature before.
The cast in Flushed Away is terrific, but it might also prove to be one of the film’s major obsticles on the road to success in the United States. Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, and Ian McKellen are outstanding choices for the lead parts, but they are all Brits in a cast that does not feature any Americans in the mix. Well, Jackman is actually Australian, but he’s playing British in the movie. I have absolutely nothing against the United Kingdom or its fine list of reputable and talented actors, but the majority of the American population might, as they have shown in the past. Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit may have been award worthy, but for a family animated feature it was a bit of a commercial disappointment, totaling only about $56 million at the box-office. That’s not a bad number considering it doubled the film’s budget, but it is relatively small when compared to other Pixar or DreamWorks endeavors. Chicken Run managed to collect a much more impressive $107 million during the theatrical run in the U.S., but you have to speculate that Mel Gibson’s vocal contributions were a big factor in what would have otherwise been another all British cast.
Unfortunately, the problem, if it can in fact be considered a problem, goes beyond the casting for the movie. For some, I believe that there is a slightly negative association with British humor and British productions in general. Anyone remember last August’s animated feature Valiant? Everything about Flushed Away just screams British. There’s always room for their particular brand of humor, but it can be an acquired taste, which kids tend not to identify with. The climax in Flushed Away reportedly revolves around the details of a World Cup soccer match, which is an exciting event in a sport that thrives all over the world, except in America. When you throw British actors into the mix, some heavily accented at that, as well as British settings, it becomes like a foreign film, which many people really don’t want to see. I’m also hesitant about the animation in general. Personally, I really like it and I’ve liked it since the first feature, Chicken Run, but I think it can seem a little unflattering and perhaps even creepy to someone just catching a few moments from the trailer. Aardman’s characterizations did seem that way to me at one point.
Having mentioned all the elements that Flushed Away will be up against, it’s important to note that the movie looks like a good one in general. Reports from early screenings suggest that it has lots of quirky charm and engaging, ironic humor. The CGI seems to look outstanding, losing the luster and color in order to retain some of the crudeness found in claymation. Uncharacteristically for DreamWorks, Flushed Away supposedly features less of the incidental pop culture jokes, which have been sacrificed to help develop the story in a more classical sense. Although it may lack the same incredible and universal appeal in the end, Flushed Away seems a lot more like a Disney-Pixar venture.
In Conclusion:
I would like to clearly indicate that in no way am I opposed to British culture, humor, films, actors, or sports. I have seen countless British movies that I have loved, including excellent ones from the Aardman Animations repertoire, and I believe that Flushed Away will be well worth checking out. In my discussion, I merely wanted to point out that productions such as Flushed Away don’t seem to ever get a good response from (insular) American audiences. People just do not identify with a World Cup soccer match the way they do with the seventh-inning stretch. You put those rats in Brooklyn, have Robert De Niro do a voice, and throw a World Series between the Yankees and the Braves into the mix and you probably have a hit.
Cast and Credits
Studio: DreamWorks
Director: David Bowers, Sam Fell
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Bill Nighy, Simon Callow, Shane Richie, Geoffrey Palmer, Jean Reno
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Kids & Family
Our Predictions
Rating:
Opening Weekend:
$18,000,000
Domestic Box Office:
$71,000,000
Similar Titles:
1. Chicken Run
2. Wallace & Gromit in The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
3. A Bug’s Life
http://www.worstpreviews.com/printer.php?id=97
What does he expect?
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Comments from people who have seen the movie -
British quirky humour at its best
Being the creators and producers of both Chicken Run and the Wallace & Gromit series, people should expect a lot from the talents of Britain's Aardman company. Luckily, again they succeed in making a great movie with their first computer animated flick Flushed Away. The story is about a spoiled rat named Roddy (Hugh Jackman). He leads a suave life as the pet of an upper class English girl. When the family is away on holiday Roddy gets flushed in the toilet and suddenly finds himself in the sewer. There he discovers a giant city filled with rats and a cruel frog boss called Toad. In an attempt to get back home Roddy enlists the help from the female shipper Rita. But she gets him into more trouble when she accidentally steals an import item from Toad. It doesn't take long before both Roddy and Rita are wanted by the whole frog mob… When movies like Cars or Over the Hedge get more and more photo realistic, Flushed Away puts an emphasis on fun and visual comedy. From the first second you'll know that you're looking at a different kind of movie. This is England, not America. Here they play soccer and not football. The movie starts at a fast pace and never lets go. The opening scene, in which Roddy plays with the toys in the house, is so funny that you get scared that the makers will not run out of bright ideas too soon. But one shouldn't worry. Most of the visual ideas are absolutely brilliant. Just take a look at rat city, which is made of microwaves, phone boots and washing machines. You should watch the movie at least twice to see it all. Of course there are a lot of reverences to other movies (James Bond, Finding Nemo and even Terminator 2) but those moments don't play a mayor part in the movie. The story is fresh and funny and leads to a nice finale involving an important soccer match. What makes Flushed Away succeed for sure are all the great characters. Toad (Ian McKellen) is a great and funny villain, the always likable Kate Winslet is a strong heroin, Bill Nighy has great moments as Toad's bodyguard Whitey and Jean Reno plays a very laughable French hit-man. But Flushed Away really is carried by Hugh Jackman, who's great performance makes you both laugh and cry. He is both the spoiled nerd as well as the over polite butler. He gets heroic if he must and even carries a great tune singing Tom Jones songs. Actually there are a lot of songs in this movie. Usually that's a thing that I don't like in CGI movies, but in Flushed Away it just works out fine. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that most of the singing was done by maggots… Because of all the scenes with water Flushed Away couldn't have been done with clay animation alone. So don't be fooled by the combination Aardman and computers. Flushed Away is a sure knock out!
www.imdb.com
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