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plot synopsis: As the village gears up for the annual Giant Vegetable Competition, hosted at the palatial estate of Lady Tottington (Bonham Carter), flaky, cheese-mad inventor Wallace (Sallis) and his trusty, silent dog Gromit are local heroes, keeping potential prize veggies safe from the local rabbit population with their humane pest-control service "Anti-Pesto." However, Wallace's botched attempt to subdue his captive bunnies via mind control unleashes an even greater menace: the giant Were-Rabbit, whose gastronomic rapacity knows no satiety and whose rampages leave the town in a panic. As Wallace & Gromit struggle to capture the beast and save the competition, sleazy hunter Victor Quartermaine (Fiennes) has a more gun-based idea of how to solve the problem, and also has his sights set on Lady Tottington and her estate.
review: Five years in the making, this is the first feature-length adventure for Nick Park's Wallace and Gromit, whose delightful short films have earned a rightfully loyal fanbase of all ages, and this new film is just about as charming as you could imagine. The artistry and craftsmanship of the film is just astonishing. The miniature sets and props contain an incredible amount of detail, it's beautifully photographed, and the animation is brilliant. Gromit, one of the best animated characters ever, conveys more range of emotion than some non-silent human actors do with just his eyes and his body language. There is some CGI, for things like fog, brain waves, or the bunnies floating inside the BunVac 3000, but for the most part things are resolutely handmade, with fingerprints often apparent in the plasticene which forms the characters. The film brilliantly combines action, comedy, and classic monster-movie motifs. As in previous Wallace & Gromit films, the action is exciting and well-paced, with a couple of uniquely-staged chases. A couple of the jokes are real groaners, and the belches and most of the slapstick are for the kids, but there's plenty of more subtle and clever wit, toothy satire, and even a few bawdy double-entendres to tickle more adult sensibilities. And although the suspense is very mild, the horror elements are beautifully atmospheric and work as both homage and gentle spoof of classic monster movies. The vocal performances are wonderful all the way around. Sallis's voice as Wallace is, of course, indelible, and even though they are the prerequisite "stars," Fiennes and Bonham Carter ham it up gleefully (and almost unrecognizably). And, of course, the film is packed with lots and lots of adorable bunnies! How could we not love it? (mike.10.05)
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