La Baleine et l'Escargote

Gorgeous animation, nice music, and l perfect narration and voices. The little one loves following along with the book, even though it doesn't follow the exact order of all the page illustrations. If only another reviewer that was concerned about the snail drowning, realised it's a sea snail, not a garden snail.

The seventh was The Snail and the Whale, a tale about a snail on the tail of a whale, traveling the ocean to see the world. Based on the children book with the same name, it was a sweet and happy story. The animation of the ocean was beautiful and spectacular. Also, there was heart in the theme and I appreciate it. 7.5/10.

Did you know that a group of snails is called a 'flock". Well it is in Julia Donaldson rhyming world and one of a group who live rather mundanely on an harbour rock dreams of going out to sea and exploring the world. Using it's very own snail-trail, it writes a message that attracts an enormous humpback whale who invites this tiny little gastropod to slide onto his tail and off they go. Luckily, he is quite adhesive so doesn't get washed off as his giant host takes him on an enjoyable trip for both us and the animators who get to present us with a submersible travelogue that shows the delights and dangers of the deep, has some fun with some hungry sharks and even manages to involve some human kids and some human kindness. This is a charmingly simple story that sort of encourages the grass is greener philosophy, but equally extols virtues of inter-reliance, friendship and courage. Maybe best not look at the whale snail scale too closely, but that's just a detail for this finely drawn film.

This animation company saw great success animating the gruffalo, then the gruffalo's child and have continued the pattern until we are on Julia Donaldson's Snail and The Whale. Here we have characters true to the original illustrations gliding through incredibly animated water in this heartwarming story of a snail who lives on a rock but wants to see the world so gets a lift on the tail of a whale. It's made for small children and is full of innocence and charm and is very very watchable. What's makes Donaldson's books work is her charming simple stories but also her rhythm. The TV show keeps the rhythm but slows it right down to create a peaceful dream like film. They don't overcomplicated it, they just deliver the book and make it cute.

As with the other stories in the franchise, its simple but effective.