Pros: Favorite characters; specific English humor; attention to detail; Numerous references to classic science fiction films and TV series Cons: Simple and predictable plot A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Genre cartoon
Directed by Will Becher, Richard Phelan
The roles were voiced by Justin Fletcher (Sean, Timmy), John Sparks (Farmer, Bitzer), Amalia Vitale (Lu-la), Richard Webber (Shirley), etc.
Aardman Animations, StudioCanal UK
Year of release 2019
IMDb website
Short films (episodes are only 7 minutes long) about Shaun the Sheep were aired on CBBC (Children’s BBC) from 2007 to 2016. The series has already lasted 5 seasons (a continuation is quite possible) and includes 150 episodes of short films and several special episodes. Moreover, one of the secondary characters of Shaun the Sheep, little Timmy, received his own series – Timmy Time, published in 2008-2012. on the CBeebies channel (BBC for the little ones) and containing 82 episodes of 10 minutes each. Both series have been licensed to dozens of countries, including Ukraine. So at the moment, almost all children on the planet born between 2000 and 2010, as well as their parents, are very familiar with Shaun the Sheep and his friends.
It is not surprising that on this wave, Aardman Animations released two full-length films about people’s favorites – Shaun the Sheep Movie in 2015 and now A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon. Plus the video game Shaun the Sheep for Nintendo DS, the musical Shaun’s Big Show, the Shaun the Sheep Experience and even helped build the Shaun the Sheep Land theme park at Skåne Zoo in Sweden.
The new part of the adventures of Shaun the Sheep is connected with a space alien who landed in the vicinity of their farm, got lost, lost his own ship and is looking for a way home. In addition, the cute alien, a girl named Lu-La, is being hunted by government agents led by a stern lady in black. Lu-Lu and Sean will face many adventures and dangerous situations, from which they will, of course, emerge victorious, and Sean’s friends, including the strict but fair dog Bitzer, will, of course, help them. Only the Farmer, tuned to his own wavelength, will traditionally not notice the madness happening around him.
As you can see, the plot of A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon is not much different from the plot of the short cartoons about Shaun the Sheep, except that there are much more characters and events. Nevertheless, the picture does not look deliberately drawn out, something is constantly happening on the screen, the characters find themselves in absurd and funny situations – in a word, you will not be bored. The script can, of course, be accused of being too simple and predictable, but it would be strange to demand something pretentious from a cartoon aimed primarily at children 5-10 years old.
At the same time, if children will laugh and cry at the misadventures of Lu-Lu, Shaun and the inhabitants of the British outback who fell under their hot hand, then for adults the authors of A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon have prepared a separate entertainment – a search for numerous references to classic science fiction films and TV series , British comedies and detective stories, books and even magazines. Doctor Who, ET The Extra-Terrestrial, Close Encounters of the Third Kind – this is just what catches your eye right away. Naturally, some knowledge of the context and preparation is required here, but if you love science fiction and British humor, go see the cartoon with your children, you will not regret it.
As is typical for Aardman Animations’ work, the new A Shaun the Sheep Movie impresses with its attention to detail. Elaboration of interiors, locations, animation of small objects, jokes and references hidden in the background.
Along with Laika studio, the authors of Kubo and the Two Strings, Aardman Animations is almost the only large company working in the genre of stop-motion animation. Considering that Laika’s last cartoon, Missing Link, failed miserably at the box office, it’s worth supporting A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon with hryvnia. Moreover, unlike the studio’s previous work, Early Man, this is a really cool, very kind and intelligent cartoon.
Conclusion:
A great gift for fans of Shaun the Sheep and lovers of plasticine animation
