The chatter is as zingy for the adults in the theater as the action is zippy for the kiddies.
Flushed Away (2006)
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted:127
Fresh:91
Rotten:36
Average Rating:6.7/10
Consensus: Clever and appealing for both children and adults, Flushed Away marks a successful entry into digital animated features for Aardman Animations.
Theatrical Release:01-12-2006
Synopsis: From DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Features, the teams behind the Oscar®-winning hits "Shrek" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit," comes the computer-animated comedy "Flushed... From DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Features, the teams behind the Oscar®-winning hits "Shrek" and "Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit," comes the computer-animated comedy "Flushed Away." Blending Aardman's trademark style and characterizations with DreamWorks' state-of-the-art computer animation, the film marks a unique new look for the artform. In this new comedy set on and beneath the streets of London, Roddy St. James (Hugh Jackman) is a pampered pet mouse who thinks he's got it made. But when a sewer rat named Sid (Shane Richie) – the definition of "low life" -- comes spewing out of the sink and decides it's his turn to enjoy the lap of luxury, Roddy schemes to rid himself of the pest by luring him into the loo for a dip in the "whirlpool." Roddy's plan backfires when he inadvertently winds up being the one flushed away into the bustling world down below. Underground, Roddy discovers a vast metropolis, where he meets Rita (Kate Winslet), a street-wise rat who is on a mission of her own. If Roddy is going to get home, he and Rita will need to escape the clutches of the villainous Toad (Sir Ian McKellen), who royally despises all rodents and has dispatched two hapless henchrats, Spike (Andy Serkis) and Whitey (Bill Nighy), as well as his cousin -- that dreaded mercenary, Le Frog (Jean Reno) – to see that Roddy and Rita are iced ... literally. "Flushed Away" stars the voices of Tony Award winner Hugh Jackman (Broadway's "The Boy From Oz," the "X-Men" film franchise) as Roddy; four-time Oscar® nominee Kate Winslet ("Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," "Iris," "Titanic," "Sense and Sensibility") as Rita; two-time Oscar® nominee Ian McKellen ("The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," "Gods and Monsters") as the Toad; Andy Serkis ("King Kong," "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King") and Bill Nighy ("Love Actually") as Spike and Whitey; Shane Richie ("Shoreditch") as Sid; and Jean Reno ("The Tiger and the Snow") as Le Frog. "Flushed Away" is being directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell, and produced by Peter Lord, David Sproxton and Cecil Kramer. -- © DreamWorks [More]
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis
Starring: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellen, Andy Serkis, Bill Nighy, Jean Reno
Director: David Bowers, Sam Fell
Director: David Bowers, Sam Fell
Story: Peter Lord, Dick Clement, Sam Fell
Screenwriter: Ian La Frenais, Joe Keenan, William Davies
Composer: Harry Gregson-Williams
Producer: Cecile Kramer, David Sproxton
Studio: DreamWorks Distribution LLC
Reviews for Flushed Away
The animation, computer-generated as opposed to Aardman's signature claymation style, pops with clever visual touches, and the voice cast, led by the omnipresent and ever likable Hugh Jackman as Roddy, is first-rate.
Little kids are sure to be bowled over by Roddy's reluctant heroism and Rita's resourcefulness, while the more grown up among us should appreciate the gleeful pokes at pop culture and Anglo-French relations.
A delightfully silly and laugh-out-loud funny animated comedy, Flushed Away bodes happily for future collaborations between DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Features.
Once again, droll British sensibility dominates the dialogue, along with their penchant for background detail and multi-layered humor. If you share my affection for Wallace & Gromit, you'll enjoy Flushed Away.
...Brilliantly designed, frantically paced, sadly soulless and immediately forgettable.
Animated films can take years to complete, and judging by some gags, Flushed Away was in the works for a while. A bit about French toads (kind of like frogs, wink, wink) being less than lionhearted plays as stale.
Many hands, including many writers, applied themselves to Flushed Away (doesn't that usually require just one hand?). The result is committee animation: cute, fast, uninspired, softly consumable.
The short attention spans of directors David Bowers and Sam Fell are mostly forgivable because the movie is filled with so many entertaining characters.
Kids will probably be in stinky-sewage heaven with the new computer-animated critter comedy Flushed Away, but even they may realize they're up the proverbial creek in a boat with a faulty motor.
Fans of Wallace and Gromit may be puzzled by a visual disconnect in Flushed Away. They will certainly, however, be delighted by the unrelenting whimsy and fast-paced gags of a story that never slows down to think about where it's going next.
Despite the switch from stop-motion to CGI, the hallmarks of a typical Aardman production are intact, right down to the characters’ round eyes and prominent teeth.
Deficient in the comedy of reticence discouragement that is Aardman's (or maybe just Nick Park's) unique strength. I don't want to say the Englishmen were corrupted, but I think they allowed their strongest, quirkiest instincts to be tethered.
The film throws just enough lunacy at us to keep things entertaining even when we're not really sure where it's going.
One of the most outright enjoyable films of the year -- an imaginative and entertaining ride from the very first flush.
It has Aardman's trademark intricacy of design, thrilling, hair's-breadth-timing of action sequences, mastery of physical properties and spaces, delightful characters, fresh and funny moments and adorable singing slugs.
...the almost total lack of substance ensures that most viewers will have an awfully hard time finding much here to embrace...
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