Fantastic Mr. Fox

by: Paolo Sardinas

Director Wes Anderson(The Royal Tenebaums) doesn't exactly seem like the ideal choice for adapting a kids novel into a kids movie. Fantastic Mr. Fox, an original short story written by Roald Dahl, is the first attempt for the director in the field of animation. But after you've seen this glorious achievement animation you'll think he's been doing it his whole life. The irony is that he's always been making cartoons throughout his whole career. I mean think about it, The Darjeeling Limited is just about as cartoony and "animated" as you could get. And Tenebaums doesn't exactly scream out a dark and gritty drama. The truth is that Anderson was born to make cartoons. No matter how unbelievable the may seem. Its shockingly true.

Adapting the famous story into his own crazy imagination he manages to be faithfully true to the source material. The story follows Mr.Fox (voice of George Clooney). A former athlete and master of chicken thieving. Mr.Fox finds out that Mrs.Fox (voice of Meryl Streep) is pregnant. Then quickly flashing forward to 12 "fox years" later Mr. Fox has left his chicken thieving ways and is quickly tempted back into reclaiming some of that glory. Sonny boy Ash (voice of Jason Schwartzman)is now a awkward and has problems living in the shadow of his father. Wow such strong topics for a kids film. An old "addict" going back to his evil ways and an awkward teen who has problems living under his fathers shadow. But don't worry it isn't that strong.

As Mr.Fox begins to go back to his evil ways his actions send waves throughout the entire animal community. He manages to upset three of the farmers, Boggis, Bunce, and Bean, and manages to force all of the animals to move underground. Yes below the three foul farmers. After one member is kidnapped, a tool to get Mr. Fox out of hiding, he must use all of cunning and wit to out do those rascally farmers. The film manages to stay true to the original novel and can, at times, be even more enjoyable. Unlike the Where the Wild Things Are adaptation, Fantastic Mr. Fox knows what kids want. It doesn't bore itself with unneeded messages, and definitely isn't a dark and scary place to watch. It feels more like it was made by children for children rather than made by adults and meant to be for children. This films captures what a fun and exciting childrens book adaptation should be like. A touching story that can remain just as timely as ever.

Anderson is a great filmmaker, even if you don't enjoy his films, I don't, but they're always entertaining and always consist of some rather interesting subject matter. He also has a knack for gathering together some of Hollywood's finest. George Clooney and Meryl Streep play a great couple. Whether their characters were real or not they fill the screen with their presence, or at least their voice. Schwartzman plays a great kid. You'd actually think he truly was a child himself if you had no idea who the hell he is. Which considering the fact that most people don't that wouldn't be a real surprise. Bill Murray also makes an appearance as Badger (yes he is a Badger) and so does Willem Dafoe as a rat and Owen Wilson as Ash's coach. Though their roles are small, they bring plenty of greatness to this already star studded cast. They each bring something unique to their characters. Animation is all about bringing fake characters to life. And these fine actors do a job well done.

Fantastic Mr. Fox still has plenty of Anderson's style and is quite frankly one of his best films in a long time. He even brought his cast to a real life farm (how exciting) so their voices actually matched what was happening. It makes you feel only closer to these lovable characters. Note that this isn't a Pixar 3-D film. Most of its style and execution will likely be enjoyed more by adults or those of us who can't seem to grow up. But there is still enough in here that would make a child fall head over heels for this charming story. It also manages to be more entertaining than the other Roald Dahl adaptation James and the Giant Peach. Though they both use stop-animation. Fantastic Mr. Fox is far better and more definitely more entertaining. The great thing about the stories of Roald Dahl is that you can imagine them being made into films. They feature touching stories which can be easily animated. Mr. Fox is probably the best one.

The trick with animation is that if the characters are lukewarm or uninteresting for anyone to give a damn, than none will give a damn. The story needs to be interesting and the topics can be as outrageous as you want them to be. In a world where every animation consists a far fetched tall tale combined with some inner meaning and moral, Fantastic Mr. Fox is something fresh and new. Sure it still has the morals and touching story but for once it isn't over to over the top for the average child. This and its incredible cast manage to be, by far the year's best animated flick. After seeing release after release using the same old 3-D animation its nice to have a little change. Combined with its touching story, lovely setting, and interesting characters. Its a great animated tale which can be enjoyed by all ages. And you know what the best part is? It manages to entertain with the most entertaining creatures: animals. Not gigantic scary beasts that dance around. Fantastic Mr. Fox is a little movie that definitely deserves your time and money.

Overall: 5/5