Panique au village
- 2009
- Tous publics
- 1h 15m
IMDb RATING
7.4/10
9K
YOUR RATING
Cowboy and Indian's only wish was to come up with a brilliant idea for Mr Horse's birthday, but when their plan ends up in utter disaster, they'll need to travel the world and back to make t... Read allCowboy and Indian's only wish was to come up with a brilliant idea for Mr Horse's birthday, but when their plan ends up in utter disaster, they'll need to travel the world and back to make things right again.Cowboy and Indian's only wish was to come up with a brilliant idea for Mr Horse's birthday, but when their plan ends up in utter disaster, they'll need to travel the world and back to make things right again.
- Awards
- 5 wins & 5 nominations total
Stéphane Aubier
- Coboy
- (voice)
- …
Jeanne Balibar
- Madame Longrée
- (voice)
Nicolas Buysse
- Mouton
- (voice)
- …
Véronique Dumont
- Janine
- (voice)
Bruce Ellison
- Indien
- (voice)
Christine Grulois
- Vache
- (voice)
- …
Frédéric Jannin
- Gendarme
- (voice)
- …
Bouli Lanners
- Facteur
- (voice)
- …
Christelle Mahy
- Poule
- (voice)
Eric Muller
- Rocky Gaufres
- (voice)
- …
François Neycken
- Cochon
- (voice)
- (as François Neyken)
Vincent Patar
- Cheval
- (voice)
- …
Pipou
- Rire de Michel
- (voice)
Franco Piscopo
- Ours
- (voice)
Benoît Poelvoorde
- Steven
- (voice)
David Ricci
- Ane
- (voice)
- …
Ben Tesseur
- Scientifique 1
- (voice)
Featured reviews
Imagine a world not unlike Terry Gilliam's Monty Python animations mixed with a dash of Robot Chicken, The Mighty Boosh and finish with the wonder of the mind of a child at its most innocent imaginative play and you are close to the beauty that is 'A Town Called Panic'. Made using stop/start animation using only existing toys it mixes humour and surrealist notions in equal measure. In this world talking horses play piano and fall in love, pigs swim underwater with octopuses and scientists are mental and super strong. The main story centres on the characters Indian, Cowboy and Horse who share not just a house but adventure and after a simple present buying goes bizarrely wrong they embark on a multicoloured toy road trip that will see them visit the centre of the earth, the depths of the ocean and the icy cold of the tundra. Along the way they will meet all manner of beings and get into all manner of situations that are as funny as they are weird. Like a strange mix of Morph, South Park (although for kids it is a PG) and Laurel and Hardy its appeal should reach all age levels and keep young and old thoroughly amused and entertained throughout. An animated classic that's bold, different and magical 'A Town Called Panic' is one crazy place to visit just remember to leave the serious you at the door.
I do remember a while back reading an article somewhere about this film, and then I ended up seeing it this week. After watching it, I can tell you that this film is a fantastic piece of art. The stop motion is incredible, and displays a professional and unique quality throughout. The character development is surprisingly great. Horse serves as your typical father/leader figure, while Cowboy and Indian are his somewhat cocky sidekicks, which leads to a great plot. Steven is especially my favorite secondary character for his often times violent and hilarious outbursts, which is great comic relief. Sure, there are some plot holes here and there, but this movie isn't very plot based. However, it is a great slapstick comedy in every way. I've never seen anything quite like it before. And to also note, this movie is perfect in French. I had no problem at all reading the subtitles, and made the movie seem that much more sophisticated. Dubbing this film in English would really destroy most of the dialog, which is also great. In a nutshell, this was a pleasant surprise, and I would recommend it to anyone who basks in the strange and ordinary.
This film is unlike the coherent, polished style of other animated films. The stop-motion and narrative are deliberately quite crude, reminding me of a child's improvised play session, and this quality makes the film absolutely unique and memorable. The three characters (Cowboy, Indian and Horse) are quirky, childlike, energetic figures who get tied up in many surreal adventures. You know this film is going to be strange when ordering fifty million bricks is just the introduction!
I just saw this at the WFAC. I must say that I wasn't expecting much out of this film. It's a good thing that I went to see it anyway, because it turned out to be one of the highlights of the festival. The closest equivalent to what "Sita Sings the Blues" was last year; though the two films are in many ways quite different, they share between them a wacky sense of humour and a refreshing inventiveness. The story of the film is insane and has to be seen to be believed. This is the kind of story that, as a kid, you wished existed somewhere. It starts out with a cowboy and an Indian accidentally ordering 50 million bricks for the birthday of their roommate, Horse, and goes from there to a visit with the Atlanteans, the centre of the earth, and giant robotic penguins.
The animation in the film is just as entertaining. I'm sure that some would call it crude, but the fact remains that it's very expressive and perfectly suited to this story and these characters. The French-language voice acting is also great.
The film has no great moral or lesson to teach us, but I think it is no less of an achievement to make something that's genuinely funny. The only thing I thought a bit strange was that it seems to go on for a little longer than it felt the natural ending point of the story should be.
This film is in the running for the animated feature Oscar this year, but probably won't be nominated; it's too low-profile and somehow I think that the animation style could offend some of the Academy professionals. But who cares about what the Academy folks think? If you want to watch something fun (even better if it's with friends), I'd highly recommend it.
The animation in the film is just as entertaining. I'm sure that some would call it crude, but the fact remains that it's very expressive and perfectly suited to this story and these characters. The French-language voice acting is also great.
The film has no great moral or lesson to teach us, but I think it is no less of an achievement to make something that's genuinely funny. The only thing I thought a bit strange was that it seems to go on for a little longer than it felt the natural ending point of the story should be.
This film is in the running for the animated feature Oscar this year, but probably won't be nominated; it's too low-profile and somehow I think that the animation style could offend some of the Academy professionals. But who cares about what the Academy folks think? If you want to watch something fun (even better if it's with friends), I'd highly recommend it.
(In French, 75 min.) This feature-length stop-motion animation that appeared at Cannes is based on the Belgian TV series by Stephane Auber and Vincent Patar. It's a film all made up using tiny figurines to tell the story of a journey to the center of the earth whre a parallel society of pointy-headed and dishonest creatures reigns. Voices of French actors Jeanne Balibar (The Duchess of Langeais) and Benoît Poelvoorde (of Man Bites Dog) are heard. The filmmakers revel in the jerkiness of the figures in (stop) motion.
You might not know this is the same stop-motion technique used in Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox. Auber and Patar have collaborated ( and voice two main characters) in a film that's not only simpler and more primitive in effect (figures even have little stands on the bottom like plaster toys) but more truly uniquely for children. Clearly this cast and crew had more modest means and objectives and motives. They didn't get glamorous superstars to voice the parts and they worked visibly from scratch, bringing to life recreations of kids' little Plasticine toys, a typically mismatched collection including a horse, an Indian, a cowboy, mechanical tractors, a piano lesson, and moving them around on surfaces that could be a village, or could be a train set or a display under a Christmas tree.
These are actually spin-offs from a TV series that Belgian, French, and maybe French Canadian kids would know. They were featured in five-minute films on the arty but widely watched French TV outlet Canal Plus and later dubbed by "Wallace and Gromit" producer Aardman Animations for export to other outlets such as Nicktoons in the U.S.; they can be found on YouTube.
The Town Called Panic effect is much more boldly artificial and crude than the stuffed but charming furry creatures in Wes Anderson's film. This is a thing of slapstick and chases, upended figures and screeches and scrambles. "An antic little joy ride," the Variety reviewer has called it, and that's about right. Shown November 13 at the San Francisco Film Society's 4th Annual Animation Festivial as one of three animated features (the others: Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox and Tarik Saleh's Metropia), it enjoyed a preview at Film Forum in New York the following week, and begins a limited US theatrical release at Film Forum December 16. The feature is not dubbed like the Aardman Animations shorts, which is better to capture the flavor of the original, of course.
You might not know this is the same stop-motion technique used in Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox. Auber and Patar have collaborated ( and voice two main characters) in a film that's not only simpler and more primitive in effect (figures even have little stands on the bottom like plaster toys) but more truly uniquely for children. Clearly this cast and crew had more modest means and objectives and motives. They didn't get glamorous superstars to voice the parts and they worked visibly from scratch, bringing to life recreations of kids' little Plasticine toys, a typically mismatched collection including a horse, an Indian, a cowboy, mechanical tractors, a piano lesson, and moving them around on surfaces that could be a village, or could be a train set or a display under a Christmas tree.
These are actually spin-offs from a TV series that Belgian, French, and maybe French Canadian kids would know. They were featured in five-minute films on the arty but widely watched French TV outlet Canal Plus and later dubbed by "Wallace and Gromit" producer Aardman Animations for export to other outlets such as Nicktoons in the U.S.; they can be found on YouTube.
The Town Called Panic effect is much more boldly artificial and crude than the stuffed but charming furry creatures in Wes Anderson's film. This is a thing of slapstick and chases, upended figures and screeches and scrambles. "An antic little joy ride," the Variety reviewer has called it, and that's about right. Shown November 13 at the San Francisco Film Society's 4th Annual Animation Festivial as one of three animated features (the others: Wes Anderson's Fantastic Mr. Fox and Tarik Saleh's Metropia), it enjoyed a preview at Film Forum in New York the following week, and begins a limited US theatrical release at Film Forum December 16. The feature is not dubbed like the Aardman Animations shorts, which is better to capture the flavor of the original, of course.
Did you know
- TriviaShot in 260 days.
- ConnectionsFeatured in La fabrique de panique (2010)
- SoundtracksGo Go Gendarme Go
Written and performed by French Cowboy
- How long is A Town Called Panic?Powered by Alexa
Details
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $165,509
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $2,850
- Dec 20, 2009
- Gross worldwide
- $505,699
- Runtime
- 1h 15m(75 min)
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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