Though clever and cheeky like most Aardman Animations‘ productions, Shaun the Sheep Movie is a decidedly more slight, if ever quaint, effort for the company. A ruminant character spawned from the Wallace & Gromit short film A Close Shave and later the titular star of the television series “Shaun the Sheep,” Mark Burton and Richard Starzak‘s big-screen debut for the wool-covered once-sidekick deliberately focuses as mightily as it can on keeping itself as snappy and pun-enthused as possible — with barely a moment wasted with its comedy during the 85 minute running time. Every second crackles with energy and enthusiasm, keeping its playful spirits up high and bewitchingly captures the silly spunk the stop-motion purists provide best in gracious handfuls.
But as passionate and loving as the production often becomes, the heart never quite pops out as vitally as it would so plentifully during Chicken Run, Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit or Arthur Christmas. It’s entirely charming, to be sure, endlessly sweet-natured and visually arresting as anything from the British animation house, it just falls a little short in the story department.
Shaun the Sheep Movie follows suit with a variety of family film clichés, something it doesn’t necessarily own up to but also uses slightly to its benefit within its pleasantly familiar good graces. A group of farm animals, including our lead, are bored with the mundane activities found living behind wooden gates under the watchful eye of their nameless farmer and his dog, Bitzer (both voiced or, more appropriately, grumbled by John Sparkes) and decide they’re due a day off. Tucking their father figure into blissful premature slumber and distracting his trusted canine with the lore of a tasty treat, they formulate a temporary visit to their owner’s nearby farm house, accompanied by popcorn munching, TV watching and couching hopping for good measure.
Soon things backfire, of course, and the man caring for them is trapped inside an out-of-control trailer rapidly wheeling itself into The Big City. After receiving a nasty bonk to the head, his identity becomes erased from his mind and, through a certain misunderstanding, becomes the hippest barber in town under the name Mr. X. As this goes down, his trusted animals also wind up caught in the hustle-and-bustle of city life attempting to find their missing human.
Through further mishaps, the trip finds them running from the nasty animal collector Trumper (voiced by Omid Djalili), forming crushes with local mutts, hiding under nearby clothes to pretend-to-be everyday people and ruckus-causing in fancy restaurants. Thankfully, no characters rap or wind up in any extended bathroom sequences, but the humor and storyline of this feature were made not only for a universal audience but a predominately young one at that. There are more fart gags and poop jokes than typically found from Nick Park‘s studio, and this often undercuts the traditional simplicity created at the core of this mostly wordless adventure.
However, Shaun the Sheep Movie balances the lowbrow sensibilities with refined, inventive and dialogue-free ocular delicacies similar to those in Sylvain Chomet‘s best work, and when it attempts to go for the most tongue-in-cheek road it’s never less than electrifyingly entertaining. These moments certainly aren’t limited; they’re just a little less frequent than they should be under Aardman’s banner.
As per usual, the animation is simply impeccable. Set designs are astounding and gorgeous in their craftsmanship, the minutiae of everyday objects are incredible in how they’re created and it’s entirely refreshing to see the lack of CG invested here, particularly considering how more apparent computer animation becomes within their last couple features. With supposedly only 20 animators on hand, to see how precise and diligently tailored their handiwork becomes makes it impossible not to be gobsmacked. If only the story Burton and Starzak created came with the same level of dedication and attention to story development, and often didn’t subside to some of the cheaper puns at their disposable. But I digress.
With a bounty of laughs and wit at every turn, there’s a good bit to like in Aardman’s sixth studio film — even if it’s not as easy to love as some of their best work. Ranked against their best material, Shaun the Sheep Movie is a mild disappointment, but that shouldn’t discredit what good is on display. Much like their last film, 2012’s The Pirates! Band of Misfits, the humor is the centerfold attraction and the jokes in question are predominantly hit-or-miss, but more stick the landing than plop and, despite suggesting otherwise in this review, there’s a modified heart beating with earnest emotional sincerity amid the wacky zanies, particularly towards the tail-end (pun not intended). It’s a gleefully goofy parade of sight gags and harmless entertainment and, though their faults become all the more persistent, it’s as easy as before to remain a devout member of the Aardman Animation herd.
