Fast reviews for busy people! Watch as I review three movies in less time than it takes to wind your watch. Have a look as I race against the clock to tell you about the charming “Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom,” the historical drama “The Weight” and the bloody good time of “Resident Evil.”Watch the whole thing HERE!
SYNOPSIS: In “Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom,” a new stop-motion fantasy comedy from Aardman Animations now playing in theatres, Shaun the Sheep’s attempts to save Halloween at Mossy Bottom Farm have unintended consequences.CAST: Justin Fletcher, John Sparkes, Kate Harbour, Richard Webber, Emma Tate, Simon Greenall, Andy Nyman, Anna Leong Brophy, Marcus Brigstocke. Directed by Steve Cox and Matthew Walker.
REVIEW: Mostly dialogue free, “Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom” relies on a sheer sense of mischief and sight gags to earn big, genuine laughs.
“Wallace and Gromit” fans may recognize Shaun the Sheep from the 1995 short film “A Close Shave” or his self-titled television series. He’s a resourceful, if impish sheep who lives with his flock at Mossy Bottom Farm.
The third feature movie in the Shaun the Sheep franchise, “Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom” begins in the days before Halloween. The animal residents of Mossy Bottom are excited for the festivities, but things go sideways when the Farmer accidentally destroys the Flock’s pumpkin patch.
Attempting to save the festivities, Shaun becomes a mad scientist, but his experiments spiral out of control and chaos reigns on the farm. The farmer goes missing just as a mysterious wild beast emerges from the woods of Mossingham.
“Shaun the Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom’s” stop motion claymation characters, complete with their big, exaggerated faces and broad bodies, are expressive and filled with personality. They’re unique, lovable, with the warmth of favorite stuffed toys come alive on the screen, and live in a finely observed world, filled with fun details to fill viewer’s eyes.
Shaun and Co. are brought to vivid life by stop motion animation, painstakingly shot at one frame at a time. This isn’t the slick CGI of Pixar or Illumination, it’s a perfectly imperfect organic process that gives the movie a beautiful handmade feel.
The Aardman Animations style harkens back to the silent era, where physical action, expression and precision comic timing were first and foremost. Add to that a quirky English sensibility, endearing and eccentric, that sees place names like the mildy saucy “Mossy Bottom,” and a surreal streak that blends Shaun’s ridiculous experiments with the traditional British countryside.
Added together, that combo of elements makes for a charming and contagious good time at the movies for audiences of all ages.
