Ruby tombée du nid

I'm quite honestly surprised that out of all the different Christmas-related stuff to base entire movies, shorts and specials around, it took someone this long to figure out there hasn't really been any Christmasy film at all to do with a robin (our most friendliest garden visitor and a definitive staple of the wintertime's lovely wildlife scenery, along with the likes of the more famous reindeer). For many years now, this is something I've always wondered about myself and I say it's about time that a studio came up with a good enough reason for a basic story treatment featuring this beautiful tiny birdie as the primary focus point and main draw of the whole thing by employing it in some sort of creative method. And visually-speaking, you don't get more creative than the gorgeous stop-motion done by none other than Aardman Animation (REAL masters at the top of this slowly-dying art-form).

Just the very straightforward "longing to belong" story of a not-so-sneaky young robin wishing she were a real mouse as to properly fit in with the rest of her stealthy scavenging family (after having been taken in by loving rodents as an egg and still cared for when she hatched into a little chick) felt like a genuinely endearing tale to me as the tightly-written script was cleverly thought-out to the point where all the amusing events of fun action and playful "food heist" sequences took place in a non-contrived organic manner, a compelling fashion that even persists right up to the happy ending's resolution of the matter at hand; wherein it presents a rather satisfying payoff to our charming lead character having now unlocked her true potential with the aerial advantages of being a flying critter, making effective use of her natural gifts in order to help aide the loved ones she cares most about (don't worry, I'm NOT going to give any specifics away!). It's aptly comparable to Annabelle's Wish (a 1997 special), which was about a dreamy cow calf who wished so badly to fly like one of Santa's magical reindeer.

Stop-motion animation is of course, in and of itself, yet another grand time-honoured tradition in this most beloved holiday season of them all. The animation work that was done on the loveable main character is especially well-realised, with our lively little robin protagonist being portrayed as having a lot of high volume energy and just an all-round positive attitude in the daring food-pinching situations she's caught up in (either while it's with her surrogate mouse family, or just her going solo). I adore these types of animated characters, the humble ones with a hopeful outlook on all of life's trials and tribulations. And child actress Bronte Carmichael, who's the only cast member I recognised in the credits due to her co-starring debut in Disney's live-action Christopher Robin film (back in 2018), brought great spirit to her optimistic character's kind temperament and warm personality. In fact, all the rest of the superb talent did a terrific job at voicing their respective roles as well (especially this Richard E. Grant fella, with his part as a shiny-obsessed collecting magpie).

One thing that caught me off-guard was that for a short film (clocking in at approx. 30 min.), I really didn't expect there to be a handful of musical numbers in here (not that I minded any of them!). Also, while I get that it's supposed to be intentionally simple, I kind of found "Robin Robin" to be a bit of an unoriginal title. Frankly seems a tad redundant to me but whatever, it's really no big deal at the end of the day (my mind's probably just overthinking that one too much). For all you avid avian enthusiasts out there who enjoy seeing a good wholesome Christmastime cartoon, this cute little short is sure to be seen as essential seasonal viewing and will most likely go down in years to come as a must-watch family favourite with its immense rewatch-ability factor, being placed right up there with the likes of such quality as The Snowman (from 1982) and Mickey's Christmas Carol (from 1983). Personally, I already deem it to be a new holiday classic for people of all ages.

Firstly, I'd like to propose two alternate titles for the piece: "Robin Mouse" and "Robin' Robin". The former relates to the way in which the protagonist is a robin named Robin who belongs to a family of mice with the surname Mouse, whereas the latter relates to the way in which our hero is a robin who is robbing crumbs and other small foodstuffs alongside her sneaky siblings. The actual title of "Robin Robin (2021)" just doesn't really do it for me as it has little narrative significance beyond the fact that the main character is a robin named Robin (she's never referred to by that double name, either). This is a minor issue, of course, and it isn't something I'm going to hold against the actual film, but I felt it was worth mentioning. This stop-motion short tells the tale of a bird who finds it hard to fit in with the mice who raised her, primarily because she's extraordinarily clumsy and seems to draw attention to herself at the most inopportune of moments. Aardman once again deliver the goods when it comes to tactile, frame-by-frame animation, this time opting for a fluffy felt aesthetic instead of their usual fingerprinted clay look. It works really well, establishing a distinct visual presence that matches the piece's generally low-key and soft-spoken nature. The flick is a subtle musical, in the sense that its few songs aren't particularly grandiose or, even, any louder than the actual dialogue. The musical sequences aren't particularly formalistic, either; the characters just do a bit of singing as they go about their usual business. This isn't a bad thing, though. The music is calm and charming in its own way, enhancing the generally relaxing nature of the overall affair. It's difficult to properly describe, but the picture is pretty much the opposite of the typical hyperactivity usually associated with family fare (which isn't to imply that hyperactivity is inherently bad). The film features a basic but important central message and several endearing core characters. The voicework, especially that of Richard E. Grant and Gillian Anderson (whose voice is oddly soothing considering how dangerous her character is), is really solid, too. Ultimately, this is an enjoyable and, for lack of a better word, nice experience right the way through. It's lovely. 7/10.

Beautifully animated, heart warming story of family.

Despite being blatant anti-feline propaganda. Why is it everyone has it in for the cats, just because they're evil vicious brutes who make a nice noise when you stroke them, and are lovely to look at.

I love my cat.

How cute, as every animated short should be, with cute messages for children, about respect, acceptance and inclusion, so necessary essential in the world we live in, highlighting the graphics, fantastically fluffy and furry, with a warm and welcoming aspect against contrasting with the cold and snow of Christmas...

Yes technically this is a half an hour short animated movie, but it was worth spending my 30 minutes watching this charming and adorable film. Everything about it from the pacing, characters, beautiful animation style is just what you expect from a great studio trying to experiment something new, and it all paid off. If you got 30 mins to spare, watch this masterpiece on Netflix!!