Shaun the Sheep Movie

There are many different animation companies that produce a ton of animated films and have been doing so for many years: Disney, Pixar, DreamWorks, Blue Sky, Sony Pictures, and a younger one, but powerful--Aardman Animations which has brought us "Chicken Run", "Wallace & Gromit", "The Curse of the Were-Rabbit" and now we have the amazing "Shaun the Sheep Movie".

When Shaun the sheep (Justin Fletcher) decides to take the day off from the farm to have some fun, he gets a little more action than he bargained for. He has to very quiet so as to not let The Farmer (John Sparkes) know what's going on, but a mix up with The Farmer, a caravan, and a very steep hill lead them all to the Big City and it's up to Shaun and the flock to return everyone safely to the green grass of home. Their major obstacle to this task? One, animal containment officer named Trumper (Omid Djalili) in which they must avoid in order to make it home at all.

Others to round out the cast are Richard Webber as Shirley, Kate Harbour as Meryl, Tim Hands as Slip, Andy Nyman as Nuts, Simon Greenall as Twins, Emma Tate as Hazel, Jack Paulson as Celebrity with Hair Trouble, Stanley Unwin as Different Announcers and Nick Park as Himself.

This was brilliantly directed by Mark Burton and Richard Starzak. What amazes me is that these guys are virtual newbies to the director's chair, however they were able to pull off such sublime, subtle direction far better than many of the seasoned directors out there today. I can't wait to see what they direct next and they will indeed. It was also written by Burton and Starzak and was phenomenal! Certainly this is where these guys have their experience, especially Burton, so it wasn't a total surprise of the competency in this category, but as I'm viewing this film, I soon realized that these writers are true professionals in every sense of the word. There storyline was entertaining, well thought out, had a great message, and the most important ingredient here is the dialogue. I say this because for the 85 minute running time, there virtually is no dialogue, however with the many expressions and body movements of the characters, these consummate writers were more than able to convey the message of this plot easily. There were a few grunts, yells, mutterings, but no actual dialogue. How many films have of you seen with virtually no dialogue that has kept your attention for the complete running time? My guess would be... none.

With a script this good and direction with finesse, along with striking animation by Aardman, this film has it all. If this film doesn't leave you with a smile on your face by films' end, there is seriously something wrong with you.

Out of 4 Stars: 4                                   Rated: PG                               85mins.