I primitivi

If you want Park's best, see his Pirates movie, with Hugh Grant. I know Wallace and Gromitt is what put Park on the map, and W&G are treasured (for good reason), but The Pirates was absolutely brilliant: a laugh a minute, inspired adventure. The process of making a stop-motion movie must be laborious, so it's a shame we see so little from Park's studios. Even though Early Man won't blow you away, it's still worth your time.

Not Park's best work? Yeah. The setup and writing is kind of slow and stodgy compared to Park's previous work, but but it's still very, very, very good content: especially when you compare it to the numerous, mind-numbing 3D animated movies Hollywood pumps out. Off the top of my head, Early Man beats out The Nut Job, Over the Hedge, Turbo, The Boss Baby, The Emoji Movie, My Little Pony... Cars... good lord, I'm making myself sick. Listing all of these subpar movies one after another like this is like eating a bunch of empty calories. Nick Park's work easily stands heads and shoulders over this mass produced crap, even if it's not his best. Early Man is *fun.* It doesn't pander to children: it's clever, fun, and the stop-motion is nothing less than charming.

A year or so ago I saw an animated DC movie, "Batman and Harley Quinn," which was truly terrible. I watch animated shows and find that I don't enjoy them. "What's wrong with me," I think. "Can all animation I see be so terrible? Am I becoming jaded?" But, hey: no, it's not me: most of the animation presented to us *is* bad. You have to see excellent content like Early Man to draw a distinction.

Nick Park's claymation creations always manage to put a smile on my face. While it doesn't quite reach the heights of their 'Wallace & Gromit' franchise, 'Early Man (2018)' is a consistently clever and chuckle-worthy affair with plenty of laughs to be had at its typically home-spun humour that just gets better the longer you think about it. The beautifully tangible animation is compounded by awesomely ostentatious vocal work and a wonderfully written script, crafting a fully formed world just one-step removed from our own. It is also far and away the best football film I've seen. Though I'm not a huge fan of the sport and always find the formula of its features rather dull, the piece has me both riveted and grinning ear-to-ear during its ball-to-boots sequences with its wisecracking yet respectful, satirical wit which remains good-natured and suitably subtle even when taking the easiest, or sometimes most obscure, of hits. 7/10

I love to no end anything that Aardman has put out, including the traditional cartoons, and this one is no ecception: as usual, the stop-motion animation is flawless. Too bad that the screenplay seems rushed and underdeveloped, and the jokes did not always work. My kids (male of 8, female of 6) laughed a lot at the football match itself, but as an adult I felt that everything was dull and predictable.

Aardman Animations have been part of my life. I will forever remember the moment Wallace wore the wrong trousers or Mrs Tweedy obnoxiously making chicken pies. Their animations are quintessentially British, and I'm somewhat patriotic about that. So it comes with no pleasure that I have to say I really didn't enjoy this. A small tribe of cavemen have been brutally kicked out of their valley. The rise of The Bronze Age creates a pivotal and existential question: who is better at football? Of course, you have your memorable characters that range from a bronze obsessed Lord to a sheepish hog...and there we have our film. Consistently, their animation style knocks it out of the park...Nick Park...*cough* everytime! Stop motion is a skill, an incredible talent and it's great to see fully fledged motion pictures are still being produced. The British voice cast were stupendously well suited, particularly Redmayne and Hiddleston who clearly had fun. Occasionally the witty script, filled with both football satire and ancient puns, did bring a smile on my face. It's just...not enough, I'm sorry to say. Look, Nick Park and the gang are endlessly inventive and provide great family entertainment value. Children will love this no doubt. It just wasn't for me. The plot was ridiculously predictable to a point where I could estimate accurately how the story would unfold. Guess what? I was right. The over reliance of crude slapstick humour (farts, annoying sounds etc.) was far too excessive and seemed dated. It's as if the studio haven't evolved whereas rivals Pixar, Laika and even Dreamworks are way ahead of the game. The story's execution felt primitive. I felt nothing towards the characters, wasn't moved by the plot and the clear moral of the story was forced down my throat. Teamwork...if you didn't get it. I just don't think football was the way to go. A real unfortunate misfire, I hope the studio bring it back with their next motion picture.

Although not the biggest fan of football, that it's from Aardman (responsible for gems like 'Wallace and Gromit', 'Creature Comforts', 'Chicken Run' and 'Shaun the Sheep', have not seen anything bad from them actually), being a family film/animation fan and that it had so many talented actors in the voice cast was enough to convince me to see 'Early Man'.

Seeing it, 'Early Man' is not one of Aardman's best and it doesn't see them at the top of their game. Then again, with a studio as consistently very good to great as Aardman, that is not a standard that can be reached constantly. It is nonetheless a very worthy effort from them and as a family film, and a film in general, 'Early Man' to me was immensely enjoyable. There is a lot of talent on board and the film doesn't waste it.

'Early Man' does lose a little of its lustre, in pace and material, towards the end, the one part where the story's predictability is most obvious (up to this point the gags, inventive visuals and puns made things feel fresh) and less overlook-able. The easily foreseeable conclusion is also a little too pat.

Otherwise, as clichéd as it sounds, could find little else to fault 'Early Man'. Visually, the film is a delight. It is rich in colour and detail, the characters are adorable and cleverly modelled and there is some nice visual invention here, like the cave paintings. One is genuinely immersed in this colourful Stone Age world. The music score is suitably energetic and really gives the film its momentum and adds to it.

As to be hoped, 'Early Man' really entertains...hugely, both in sending up the Stone Age and football. Despite how mismatched it sounds having Stone Age inhabitants having their version of football, the combination actually goes very well. Any film that helps me appreciate football better, like 'Early Man' did, is worthy of any kind of credit.

The gags come thick and fast, there's plenty of them and they are subtle, clever and often hilarious, in typical Aardman fashion. Love their versions of technology, like the beetle electric shaver and the crocodile clothes pegs. There are some inspired puns and wordplay, like the duo of football pundits, primordial soup and the name Goona. 'Early Man' makes a lot of effort appealing to kids and adults alike and succeeds in doing that.

Kids will be thoroughly absorbed in the action and the inventive ideas and technology while adults will love, or at least appreciate, the puns (which they are actually more likely to get) and there is even a Mud reference to get nostalgic over. The pacing is spirited and tight throughout, and while the story is not much new and loses steam towards the end the energy and that it never goes wayward are to be applauded.

Characters are uniformly engaging, from the likeable protagonist, hilarious supporting characters to the camp villains. The voice cast are a talented bunch and they are all terrific, even those who raises some initial surprise in their involvement (i.e. Eddie Redmayne and Maisie Williams) do a great job, while Timothy Spall, Mark Williams and Tom Hiddleston (experienced in villain roles and not unfamiliar to voice work, both of them obvious) are standouts.

In summary, immensely enjoyable family fare for something for all ages. 8/10 Bethany Cox