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(out of 5)
Your favourite adorable claymation heroes are back, and this time they’ve been given their very first feature film. Clever inventor Wallace and his ever-talented dog Gromit run a successful business ridding their neighbours of pesky rabbits who threaten their vegetable gardens. Wallace and Gromit’s township is having a festival of giant vegetables in a matter of days, and it is very important to the citizens that their pet projects remain untouched, which is where the duo’s humane (i.e. they don’t kill the bunnies) operation proves useful. After Wallace experiments with his mind-influencing machine on one of his bunny prisoners, he ends up creating a giant monster that terrorizes the neighbourhood’s backyards every time the full moon appears in the sky. Helena Bonham Carter is adorable as the aristocratic hostess of the festival who is also the apple of Wallace’s eye, while Ralph Fiennes gets quite a few chuckles as the dastardly bunny-killing rival who doesn’t believe in humane pest control. Superbly animated, with a terrific screenplay and marvelous direction that lives up to the success of the very popular, Oscar winning short films.
Aardman Animations, DreamWorks Animation
Directed by Steve Box, Nick Park
Screenplay by Steve Box, Nick Park, Mark Burton, Bob Baker, based on characters created by Nick Park
Cinematography by Tristan Oliver, Dave Alex Riddett
Produced by Claire Jennings, Peter Lord, Nick Park, Carla Shelley, David Sproxton
Music by Julian Nott
Production Design by Phil Lewis
Film Editing by David McCormick, Angharad Owen, Gregory Perler
New York Film Critics Awards 2005.
Online Film Critics Awards 2005.
Phoenix Film Critics Awards 2005.