Shaun das Schaf: Der Film

I considered Aardmans last stop motion effort 'Pirates - in an adventures with scientists' to be a bit of a let down when it was released three years ago and wondered if they had gone off the boil a little bit by trying to appeal to the mass market and thus diluting their witty humour as a result. However after 80 odd minutes of Shaun the Sheep I am happy to report that they are back on track.

Shaun is extremely well animated and manages to keep the story ticking along and funny enough to keep your interest without really feeling stretched. Considering as the film has no real dialogue to speak of that is no mean feat, and is reliant on top notch production design, expressive animation and a script that is entertaining and funny without being overly ridiculous. Whilst the Shaun the Sheep/Timmy Time TV shorts are aimed at young viewers, there is a decent amount of underlying humour here that adults will also engage with and thus it doesn't insult your intelligence the way some films do.

After Aardmans infamous falling out with DreamWorks (who wanted them to Americanize Wallace & Gromit) I did wonder if Aardman had sold out for the mass market after feeling the Sony Pictures distributed Pirates had a whiff of compromise to it, and that's partly why I felt Pirates fell a bit flat. However Aardman have teamed up with an independent European distributor for Shaun and as a result it seems they were allowed to make the film they wanted to make this time round. In effect I was not disappointed with Shaun, the simple but hilarious premise of the TV show is expanded successfully to the big screen with no noticeable compromises for the mass market. That the film is also dialogue free should make it an easy sell abroad too and I'm glad to see the film has been well received.

So well done to Aardman for making one of 2015's most enjoyable, entertaining and amusing films so far.

For a while, I've held a belief that Aardman can do no wrong, and thankfully this latest example has kept up that belief and then some. It's actually rather difficult to write a review of this movie, because there's not a whole lot one can actually comment on. For instance, I can't say anything about voice acting, or script, because there is literally no dialogue. I mean, there are voice actors (for example Omid Djalili as Tramper the villain) but all they do is mumble (and in the case of the sheep actors, bleat) and stuff. I suppose this, then, serves as a testament to the sheer quality of Aardman's animation. In addition to it being fantastic that claymation can still find its way onto the screen today, it's also brilliant that such a film has found such capable animators; the animation is beautiful, and though you may think they may not be able to convey so much emotion with just facial expressions and mumbles, lo and behold, they do; from glee, to terror, to sadness, to panic, and many more, the characters they've created are absolutely brimming with emotion, and immensely watchable at the same time, and that just makes this movie all the more effective. Lack of a proper script also doesn't seem to trouble Aardman either; this movie is really goddamn funny. The physical comedy sequences, the highlight of which has to be the gleefully chaotic scene in a restaurant, are done to a tee, quite possibly the best Aardman has done them since Flushed Away, while Aardman's trademark sight gags, though not quite as strong as they were in previous offering The Pirates! (the Brian Blessed gag comes to mind), are ever-present and really quite amusing, however obvious or subtle they may be (for instance, "The Big City - twinned with Le Grande Ville, La Ciudad Grande"). My main gripe was that towards the end, which I won't spoil, things do get a bit too cheesy for my tastes, but the rest of the movie, and indeed most of the climactic sequences, more than make up for that. Shaun The Sheep: The Movie only serves to reinforce why I am such a huge fan of the Bristol lads to begin with, and while it is nowhere near as good as their first two features, it is definitely a worthy addition to their fine repertoire of work. If you're looking for some great entertainment on an afternoon, you could do a lot worse than this.

13 February 2015 Film of Choice at The Plaza Dorchester This Aftenoon - Shaun The Sheep. I would just like to point out that I was the only adult there without a child.....or maybe I was the only child without an adult!!!!!! Nick Park and his team have done it again. This was classic Aardman animation, with our old pal Shaun. Bored with his mundane life Shaun and his sheepy friends engineer a way to have a day off but all goes drastically wrong when the farmer ends up in the big city with memory loss. It's up to the animals to save him and what follows is a madcap series of events where nobody questions sheep dressed as humans or any of the antics that occur. Completely without dialogue the story is carried along by the excellent score and gesticulations and a gaggle of bleats, grunts and other indiscriminate noises. As we know animation these days caters for all ages and with various movie references included the adults were definitely laughing at different times to the children. Watching some good old stop motion animation is a very pleasant way to pass the time.

I know the title of this review sounds cliché and somewhat pandering, but this film truly is a delight for all well mannered (perhaps even ill tempered) audiences of all ages.

As other reviews have stated, the main character, Shaun the Sheep, is from the Wallace and Gromit short "A Close Shave", where in Shaun helps the duo overcome a mechanical threat of canine sorts.

This film propels Shaun (a star in his own series) into the biggest adventure he's ever had since "A Close Shave" way back in the mid 90s. Shaun leads his flock through a series of very funny misadventures to rescue a member of their farm-family, so to speak.

Everything here is pantomime, and hearkens back to the days of old before sound was added to film. This is, in spirit, a silent film in the sense that there's no dialogue, and all the communication is primarily done with showing the audience the story as opposed to telling it to us through dialogue. The gags are the usual clever Aardman offerings, but there's also some very witty use of classic silent era gags, yet with a very British flavor of understatement, which makes the comedy in this film all that much funnier.

Truly I hadn't laughed out loud at a comedy film in who knows how long, and it was something that was much welcome in our day and age of low brow humor. Regrettably there are a couple of flatulence gags (I'm guessing primarily for the kiddies) that didn't need to be. But most of the other humor is keen, dextrous in execution and inventive in concept, and very British in overall gist.

Finally, as with most of Aardman productions, there's a knack for demonstrating the villain who has more tech wizardry as an expression of brawn to make up for brain, or lack thereof. It is a running theme in some of Aardman Production's films, notably the Wallace and Gromit series, and should serve as a nice little, almost subliminal, message to young minds as they mature into full adults.

Again, very delightful and very fun.

Give it a shot. You won't be disappointed.

For 'Shaun the Sheep' Aardman Animations gracefully goes back to its roots. If you are not familiar with the character of Shaun, then perhaps I should elaborate. He was first seen in the third Wallace & Gromit short 'A Close Shave'. The world he inhabits has no characters that speak an audible line of dialogue. It is all silent, save for the odd sound effect and the musical score. This is Aardman's sixth feature length film or third if you just count stop-motion.

The plot is of course very basic. But that suits the film just fine, it is not trying to be the next 'Inception' and it doesn't need to be. With silent films the simpler the better. Shaun decides that he wants some well deserved time off from his work on the farm. The group or flock want a day off, but they instead end up in rather a mess. Which eventually leads them to the Big City aka London. Meanwhile, through a misunderstanding their farmer is hospitalized with no recollection of whom he is and Shaun. It is up to Shaun and the gang to set the farmer free and return home, before further trouble is had.

Queue great scenes that are funny, referential and light hearted. The first factor being the most unexpected, considering that there is no dialogue at all. Meaning that Shaun relies heavily upon visual humour, which works a treat. It never forays into dark territory and thankfully keeps the tone consistently light hearted with good intentions. It would be impossible to list all the references one could find when viewing it, but let me bring up a few. They are, The Shawshank Redemption, The Silence of the Lambs and The Wolverine. So even the adults will get a chuckle out of it. This film really is for all ages.

The stop motion animation is fabulous and showcases how far Aardman have come along since 1989's A Grand Day Out. It is even well paced and runs little over seventy-five brief minutes. Meaning it never gets tiresome. But the length proves to still be part of the problem. The film is far too short and I wanted I needed so much more. I would not have minded watching this film even if its running time was in fact doubled. I know this is not a big issue, considering the film is silent and still has warmth, heart and a soul. But, some character development would not have gone amiss.

If you are curious as to where 'Shaun' places amongst the other feature length stop motion pictures, then it follows thus; it is greater than 'Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were- Rabbit', but lacks the shear enthusiasm of 'Chicken Run'. But, could the woolly fella ever compete with such grand competition? Probably not, but there is less than a feather between the overall quality of the two.

'Shaun the Sheep' to the cynical will no doubt appear to be a cash grab from Aardman. (As the gang already have a television show to its name). This could not be further from the truth. Shaun is warm, heartfelt, moving, exciting and soulful. No matter what age you are, you will be in for a delight provided by this excellent film from Aardman, further proving that they can do no wrong. I urge anyone to come forward and say they were bored; the mere thought of which is inconceivable!