Movie Info
Movie Name: Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
Studio: Aardman Animations
Genre(s): Animated/Comedy/Family
Release Date(s): October 7, 2005
MPAA Rating: G
Capturing rabbits and taking names!
It’s Tottington Hall’s Giant Vegetable Competition and the Golden Carrot is at stake. The only thing standing between the town and rabbits is “Anti-Pesto” pest control run by Wallace and his dog Gromit. When Wallace tries to impress Lady Tottington by creating a way to forever keep rabbit from eating vegetables, he unwittingly unleashes a mutant rabbit monster upon the town. Hunted by Lord Victor Quartermaine, Wallace and Gromit try to capture the Were-Rabbit first…but the Were-Rabbit has a secret!
Directed by Nick Park, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is a stop-motion animation. The film is based on the Wallace & Gromit shorts by Nick Park that began in 1990. The movie won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
Wallace & Gromit already had a big fan base when this movie was released. Though I am an animation fan, I am not a huge fan of Wallace & Gromit. That doesn’t mean I don’t like the films, but I don’t seek them out. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit follows in the tradition of other Wallace & Gromit shorts and is strong, but it isn’t necessary my favorite.
The horror, the horror…
Wallace & Gromit is very dry humor. It has a lot of puns and many of the gags are lengthy set-ups for a smart chuckle rather than a laugh. This film plays a lot with the clichés of old horror monster movies (which is a good thing) and as a kid I think I would have had a hard time following some of the humor since it primarily seems aimed at adults (though it is kid friendly).
The dialogue and voice actors seem almost secondary in Wallace & Gromit (especially since Gromit is mute). Peter Sallis voices Wallace and a lot of the humor is his bumbling nature but the mute Gromit is the better character. The movie brings in Ralph Fiennes to play the gun-happy Lord Victor Quatermaine who is trying to woo Lady Tottington and Lady Tottington is voiced by Helena Bonham Carter.
The Were-Rabbit must die!
The animation like most Aardman Animations is slick. The stop-motion work is slick and maybe not as polished as some of the modern stop-motion animation, but that is part of the charm of the work. Wallace & Gromit isn’t mean to be perfect and it is the imperfections that gives the work substance unlike computer animation.
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit might not be my favorite animated movie but it is a very good animated movie. I feel that the style and humor make it a little niche in its audience, but obviously it did well so perhaps it is a bigger than I thought. It is definitely worth seeking out…because the Were-Rabbit stalks at midnight!
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