Ein Eierfilm 3

It's not usual to see a Mexican film being highlighted in Portugal, and even less being entirely dubbed into our language. However, I have just seen it on TV, on a Sunday morning, the regular time at which children's animated films are usually shown. And after researching a little about it, I was truly surprised by the number of films about roosters and eggs that Mexican animation cinema has already made.

Overall, I liked what I saw. It's not an original film, we've already seen a lot of similar things, but it was a consistent, solid effort and denotes some ambition and also technical and artistic capacity, which is commendable for a country that makes a lot of cinema for regional consumption, but has some difficulty in export films to the Old Continent. It's not a movie that makes me laugh a lot, and I bet most kids will enjoy it, but without feeling excited about what they're seeing and quickly forgetting everything they've seen.

The script revolves around Toto, a young chicken who has to save his family's farm, preventing it from being taken over by a malicious landowner. To do so, he needs to defeat a big fighting cock in a stakes fight. Of course, the other animals, chickens and talking eggs will try their best to help you tip the odds in your favour. Therefore, it is a retelling of the old story of David against Goliath, of the struggle of the oppressed and weak against the powerful. It's effective, has a good, uplifting moral message, and entertains the audience well.

On a technical level, the film deserves attention for its impeccable graphics and visuals. The CGI used in the animations is not exactly state of the art, it is not pristine and ultra-realistic. None of that. However, it's elegant enough, pretty enough, doesn't make gross mistakes, and has very good color and stroke. The mood isn't perfect, but it seems okay, it's within what I expected to find. I cannot evaluate the original dialogues and jokes since I saw the dubbed version for my language and not the original, but I am satisfied with the dub done by the Portuguese, it is a job that seems to be well done.

Obviously is intended for Spanish speaking markets (and specially Mexican, since it has a lot of double meaning expressions). I thoroughly enjoyed it, and once the DVD/BlueRay is out, I'll get it. It is hard to translate since 'eggs' (which is pretty much the title of the movie: a rooster with many eggs, the correct translation would be a rooster with many balls - where balls stand for testicles) is just a double meaning word... Many of the situations and expressions are very well used, but as I mentioned above, it is for the Mexican audience, I doubt the rest of Spanish speaking countries will understand the secret expressions. Even without understanding them, the story is OK and the animation is excellent. It is a pity that studio shut down after the termination of the movie.

A lighthearted animated film about a rooster and his dreams, set in a Mexican ranch full of funny characters, this Mexican movie is very different from a Pixar classic, but the animation is quite good, the storyline is simple and full of references to other classic movies like Rocky, The Godfather, The Karate Kid, I found some parts real funny and there are a couple of musicals, we have seen the same story many other times but I guess the Mexican approach is what makes it different, the voices of the characters are made by very recognizable Mexican actors for the Spanish version, its good for both young and their parents, just don't expect a "Finding Nemo" level.

Un Gallo con Muchos Huevos ("a rooster with many eggs") opened in three-hundred and ninety-five theaters over the 2015 Labor Day weekend, making it the largest theater-count for a Mexican-animated film in America. If this film winds up experiencing a strong opening weekend, say $3 - 5 million or more, it could be a turning point for Spanish cinema in America. For years, I've wondered why Bollywood films are constantly appearing in American theaters and so seldom do we see a Spanish-speaking film in theaters, when Latinos are the most prominent and fastest growing minority in the United States.

Un Gallo con Muchos Huevos is not an amazingly strong film, but it's certainly not a bad kickoff for what could be more Spanish-speaking animated films finding a wider, more consistent release in US theaters. The film is another installment in the long-running Huevocartoon Producciones series, a formerly 2D animated film company, which has churned out animated films with lovable characters and slapstick humor for many years. This is the turning point for the company not only because this is the first time one of the films sees a wider release in America, but because the animation style of the series has been upgraded to CGI, giving the characters a more distinctive look than their traditionally animated counterparts. Finally, the screenwriters of the film took a different approach to writing the characters and the film than they have in the past, slightly forgoing the slapstick humor to make the film a bit more racier in its humor (hence the PG-13 rating), and toying with the fun of innuendos and double-entendres.

All these stakes would make one question if the film would collapse under the weight of its greater scope and ambition, but the film works well enough to see that this is the case where everybody, the director, the writers, and the voice actors, seems to be having a good time acting goofy. The film revolves around a timid little rooster named Toto (voiced by Bruno Bichir), who is tasked with the challenge of fighting an evil rancher, who threatens to buy and destroy his family's farm, which has been passed down through generations. In order to keep the farm, Toto must fight Bankivoide (Sergio Sendel), an enormous rooster, in a cockfight with winner-take-all stakes. Already feeling himself crumble under pressure, Toto enlists in the help of his pals, a strip of bacon, a frog, and, yes, muchos huevos, to help him bring down Banki and save his family's farm.

As stated, much of the film is built of innuendos and slightly more risqué humor than your traditional animated feature (even the title can be interpreted two ways). I have no doubt that some of the best jokes get lost in the English translation, but the the strength of screenwriters Carlos Zepeda and Javier Calderón comes in the way they can break down those barriers and make a film that has a solid amount of jokes that hit regardless of what language the film is in. With that, the characters, while on the zanier, more ridiculous side, find their own ways to charm, particularly a petulant but well-meaning frog, who helps earn the film some of its biggest laughs.

Un Gallo con Muchos Huevos is charming enough for a family outing; much of its humor is on the milder side and the bright colors and lively characters likely will distract from any racier jokes the film is attempting to get away with. This is on the more popcorn-entertainment side of the spectrum, lacking the narrative heft and longevity most animated films can merit, but the result is endearing, sweet, and surprisingly innocent little outing that could find itself being a pioneer for Spanish cinema in America.

Voiced by: Bruno Bichir, Sergio Sendel, Maite Perroni, Omar Chaparro, Ninel Conde, and Carlos Espejel. Directed by: Gabriel Riva Palacio Alatriste.

It's a decent third part; the plot is fine, the voice actors are very good and the CGI animation is passable; I recommend it if you like Huevocartoon Productions movies.