Chicken Run

Released 30th June 2000, Chicken Run follows Ginger, the chicken, as she prepares her fellow chickens to escape from Tweedy’s farm. It is worth noting straight away that the film takes delicate inspiration from 1963’s The Great Escape in its narrative and even the soundtrack (more on that later). While the animation seems to pander to a younger audience, the film manages to establish a threatening atmosphere early on which you likely wouldn’t see in many other animated films. That said, much like The Great Escape, the film manages to strike a balance in its laid back humour with the imminent threat to the chickens. Most of the film’s humour derives from the creative use of human apparatus in the chicken’s settings and the quirky personalities. I cannot fault any of the voice actors in this film; everyone has perfect delivery and characterisation throughout the narrative.

Julia Sawalha does a great job as the hopeful protagonist Ginger; she is fuelled by the hope that the chickens may all live free of egg counts and fences. Aiding this dream is the smooth talking Rocky the Rooster (voiced by none other than Mel Gibson). Much like Thomas O’Malley from The Aristocats, Rocky acts as the beacon of freedom in life by providing unorthodox experiences which give joy to his peers. That said, he also faces his own troubles of deceit and dishonesty which enable him to have fantastic character moments in the third act. Benjamin Whitrow is distinctly entertaining as Fowler the Cockerel. As a likely tribute to it’s the Great Escape roots, he is characterised as a military veteran who bickers with everyone using the ‘back in my day’ argument; this also means he is honourably wholesome and impossible to dislike. The pairings of Timothy Spall’s Nick and Phil Daniels’ Fetcher as well as Tony Haygarth’s Mr Tweedy and Miranda Richardson’s Mrs Tweedy are hysterical in their own rights.

While stop motion films were not a new concept in cinema, this film feels like the cornerstone of modern stop-motion through its seamless movements and detailed set designs. As previously stated, the soundtrack is generally adopted off of The Great Escape with many leitmotifs being carried over into this film. However, John Powell retools the pre-existing music with loftier symphonic choices to better suit the rest of the production. However, the application of these motifs are absolutely astounding and captivating in their respective scenes. Overall, while Chicken Run isn’t the most original film, it makes extremely nuanced decisions which make for a truly engaging and delightful experience for anyone to enjoy.