After 16 long years, Wallace and Gromit return in a near-perfect film

For many people, the holiday-filled end of the year means spending a lot of time with the family. Invariably, football scores are checked, strange cousins ​​are avoided, conversations turn to old stories retold over and over again as if they were being told for the first time, and of course, movies are watched. For those who already have Christmas on their minds (pretty acceptable as early as Thanksgiving), classics like Gremlins, Bad Santa Clausand everyone else will serve as white noise behind the family conversation, wrapping themselves like holly boughs in memories old and new. Sensing the relentless sameness, Netflix brought a new flavor to the rotation Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl. The UK public premiere is on Christmas Day on BBC One and January 3rd on Netflix (a bit too late for Americans to add it into the holiday mix, although still in standard territory), Claymation’s new flatbread crunching wonder is sure to become a new year-end staple.

Apart from that, Revenge on the most fowl is actually not associated with Christmas. However, the film and its Christmas prime-time slot bring out the optimistic undertones of exuberance and quiet earthiness that are inextricably linked to the “holiday spirit.” The fumbling antics of the cloudy Wallace, whose ACME-like inventions arise from an interest in doing as little manual labor as possible, also suggest a desire for comfort that most people can only afford after years of searching for personal finances and avoiding familial ones Commitments. Voiced by Ben Whitehead – who originally voiced Mr. Leaching in the previous film Wallace & Gromit Feature, 2005 Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbitbefore taking over the lead role after former Wallace, Peter Sallis, retired – Wallace is one of those characters that conveys a sense of deep comfort and familiarity. He is likeable because his intentions are clear: to minimize the time he spends without tea and cheese, the crucial ingredients of a life well spent.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is a welcome return to silly but meaningful form

The film revives the series’ classic formula and brings new dimensions to the storytelling

Wallace and his beleaguered, silently judgmental dog Gromit return after (see notes) a surprising 16 years away. Despite their nearly two-decade absence, they immediately return to the rhythms established by the 1989 short film A great day trip (First broadcast on Christmas Eve, mind you), followed by three more short films, two shows and the previous feature film. It should be noted that their canon does this not include everything from the spiritual successor, Shaun the sheep. Part of what makes it feel like not much time has passed is the how the flawless construction of a standard Wallace & Gromit Arc makes it possible to watch it over and over again, aging only in technology, not in humor. Then, as now, the dim-witted but kindly Wallace (once again) does something crazy and utterly British and forces the stoic, Neanderthal-browed Gromit to clean up his mess.

This time, Wallace’s overbearing pursuit of simplicity results in Norbot – a robotic “intelligent gnome” with a tight, broad, unsentimental grimace and mechanically adept gardening skills – inadvertently making Gromit obsolete in his own garden. The Zen practice of growing greenery is unnecessary with this new gnome, which quickly becomes the talk of the town. This then leads to a small army of identical automaton gardeners who find essential joy in pulling weeds. In the wake of this new invention and when Wallace doesn’t understand how a simple tea kettle works, this becomes clear Wallace & Gromit brings the cute inventions of his inventions to new dimensions for the first time and subjects their pattern to a gentle examination. The core theme of this film is the diminished quality of life that comes from technological compromises. Aardman Studios gets to the heart of this relevant premise, arguing for the superiority of hand-made films over assembly-line tentpoles without ever having to spell it out. This is in sharp contrast to what most other similar “satires” do these days, which is to state the obvious and take obviously cheap shots without adding anything new to the conversation. And, for the record, mostly handmade and stop motion Revenge on the most fowl uses just a tasteful touch of CG manipulation.

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Story creators Nick Park and Mark Burton use the standard Wallace & Gromit It’s more than just an endless series of gags that draw unprecedented clarity from the basic elements. But it is anything but divergent. Through and through this is one Wallace & Gromit Film that continues to justify the ongoing, if intermittent, antics of its charismatic plasticine leads. It is both a realignment according to the Hound of the Baskervilles-like foray into the uncanny and supernatural The Curse of the Wererabbit offered and a refinement of the franchise’s thematic principles. Adding to a crazy story already full of visual invention and deceptively simple, brilliant punchlines is the return of the franchise’s most iconic villain: the red rubber-glove-wearing Feathers McGraw, a pearl-eyed penguin whose indefatigable personality is menacing precisely because it is is unreadable.

It’s from Feathers McGraw, who has returned with conviction after 31 years (presumably spent in the zoo’s enclosure). Cape FearMax Cady – that the film receives a traditional complication. Specifically, he acts as a classic antagonist who pushes Wallace’s seemingly harmless invention into the realm of horror. The fugitive Penguin hacks into the gnome army and wreaks havoc on Wallace’s neighbors, making the bumbling hero public enemy number one and forcing Gromit to once again find a way to save the day. Unlike role retaliation in a variety of Cash Crab sequels, McGraw’s return is welcome; The character hasn’t aged a day since his last failed attempt to steal the Blue Diamond.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is the best entry in the franchise to date

The film is perfect for both old and new fans

With Tex Avery mechanics, Rube Goldberg gizmos reminiscent of Pee-wee Herman and Wile E. Coyote in equal measure, and lengthy arrangements with inspired panache, There is a lot to offer Revenge Most Fowl’s a short running time of one hour and ten minutes. If the film weren’t so finely tuned, you’d get the nagging feeling that, after so long, this entry doesn’t offer enough of the characters audiences know and love. Luckily it’s neither too long nor too short. It offers just enough to (hopefully) satiate fans until the next installment and send them right back to the beginning of the series, where they can watch all of Wallace and Gromit’s classic shorts and features in a single sitting. Wallace & Gromits visual comfort – the cinematic equivalent of the popular cuddle game Stardew Valley – remains as close as ever without sacrificing attempts to challenge and transform for a changing world.

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Everything Wallace & Gromit is a homage to excerpts directly from the silent film comedies of authors such as Buster Keaton. The compositional mastery and dedication to the role accomplished by this silent film giant can be felt in every pulse of Gromit’s brow protrusion and the spinning plate sequences of ever-increasing stakes. From a logistical point of view Wallace & Gromit remains in a league that surpasses even the unfairly maligned digitally animated adaptation The Adventures of Tintindirected by Steven Spielberg, failed to achieve that. Namely, a visual spectacle worthy of the company of its stylistic forebears. Revenge on the most fowl is Wallace and Gromit at their most sincere and clever. Her latest film is a veritable mess of clarity and stop-motion chaos. The slapstick remains as funny as ever and the previously unseen layers will be a pleasant surprise to even the most seasoned fans of the series.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl will premiere on BBC One on Christmas Day, with a release on Netflix following shortly after on January 3, 2025.

Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl

Gromit worries that Wallace has become too dependent on his inventions, which proves to be justified when Wallace invents an “intelligent gnome” that appears to develop a mind of its own.

director

Merlin Crossingham, Nick Park

Release date

October 27, 2024

Pour

Ben Whitehead, Garth Jennings, Reece Shearsmith, Peter Kay, Maya Sondhi, Diane Morgan, Lenny Henry, Adjoa Andoh, Muzz Khan, Lauren Patel

writer

Mark Burton, Nick Park

Duration

70 minutes

Character(s)

Wallace, Zookeeper, Norbot, Inspector Mackintosh, Mrs. Gazebo

Advantages

• Wallace & Gromit is the same in every way and opens up new dimensions
• Aardman Studios have created another wonder of sight and sound; a pleasure from start to finish

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