Chicago – Humor flows from one individual, and reaches another. Whether the receiver laughs or not is subjective, based on experiences and worldview. It can be agreed, however, that animator Nick Park (“Wallace & Gromit”) is hilarious, and he’ll make the world laugh in “Early Man.”
Rating: 5.0/5.0
Set in the cave man era, what begins as a glimpse into the transition from dinosaurs to homo sapiens, becomes a broad satire of greed and soccer (football, of course, to the rest of the world). Yes, through a convoluted series of events, Park converts the cave man cartoon picture into a satire of the sports underdog genre, and makes it funny on all levels. From a rag-tag bunch of cave dwellers trying to learn soccer, to a giant duck that makes perfectly timed appearances, “Early Man” is the film guaranteed to chase all the blues away. Nick Park is an international animation treasure.
Rating: 5.0/5.0
Set in the cave man era, what begins as a glimpse into the transition from dinosaurs to homo sapiens, becomes a broad satire of greed and soccer (football, of course, to the rest of the world). Yes, through a convoluted series of events, Park converts the cave man cartoon picture into a satire of the sports underdog genre, and makes it funny on all levels. From a rag-tag bunch of cave dwellers trying to learn soccer, to a giant duck that makes perfectly timed appearances, “Early Man” is the film guaranteed to chase all the blues away. Nick Park is an international animation treasure.
- 2/19/2018
- by adam@hollywoodchicago.com (Adam Fendelman)
- HollywoodChicago.com
One of the key figures responsible for the creation of some of the most expressive and existentially relatable characters of the last four decades, Nick Park has spent his career innovating on the possibilities of claymation. Never mind the achievement that one of his most well-known characters is a mute canine who’s more slyly verbose than most motormouths in any medium. Mining liberally from the slapstick calamities of golden age Looney Tunes and the freewheeling absurdity of Monty Python, Park reimagined claymation’s populist appeal, paving the way for everyone from Laika to Wes Anderson.
That’s perhaps why it’s so gut-wrenching that Aardman Animation’s latest effort, Early Man, feels so anonymous and warmed over in every aspect other than its signature visual zeal. Park’s first return to directing since the excellent Peter Sallis swan song, A Matter of Loaf and Death, is filled with the expected studio touches.
That’s perhaps why it’s so gut-wrenching that Aardman Animation’s latest effort, Early Man, feels so anonymous and warmed over in every aspect other than its signature visual zeal. Park’s first return to directing since the excellent Peter Sallis swan song, A Matter of Loaf and Death, is filled with the expected studio touches.
- 2/16/2018
- by Michael Snydel
- The Film Stage
Stars: Eddie Redmayne, Tom Hiddleston, Maisie Williams, Timothy Spall, Miriam Margolyes, Rob Brydon, Johnny Vegas, Mark Williams, Richard Ayoade, Gina Yashere, Nick Park, Kayvan Novak | Written by Mark Burton, James Higginson | Directed by Nick Park
Aardman animation supremo Nick Park (Wallace and Gromit) makes a welcome return to claymation with this engaging and warm-hearted caveman comedy that’s a treat for both adults and children alike.
Set in Stone-Age England (near Manchester), Early Man centres on happy-go-lucky caveman Dug (Eddie Redmayne), whose peaceful tribe are rudely evicted from their fertile valley by snooty, French-accented Bronze Ager Lord Nooth (Tom Hiddleston). With the aid of his loyal wild boar Hognob (assorted grunts and snorts from Park himself), Dug succeeds in challenging Lord Nooth to a winner-takes-all football match, with the valley at stake as the prize. There’s just one problem: Dug’s tribe have never played the game, while Nooth...
Aardman animation supremo Nick Park (Wallace and Gromit) makes a welcome return to claymation with this engaging and warm-hearted caveman comedy that’s a treat for both adults and children alike.
Set in Stone-Age England (near Manchester), Early Man centres on happy-go-lucky caveman Dug (Eddie Redmayne), whose peaceful tribe are rudely evicted from their fertile valley by snooty, French-accented Bronze Ager Lord Nooth (Tom Hiddleston). With the aid of his loyal wild boar Hognob (assorted grunts and snorts from Park himself), Dug succeeds in challenging Lord Nooth to a winner-takes-all football match, with the valley at stake as the prize. There’s just one problem: Dug’s tribe have never played the game, while Nooth...
- 1/26/2018
- by Matthew Turner
- Nerdly
Nick Park’s hilarious family animation pitches the stone age against the bronze age in a prehistoric football fantasy
Lovability, wit and fun – on regular form, Nick Park’s Aardman Animations will always provide these. At their best, they give you hope that our island has a future after all. His latest film is an outstanding family comedy, an underdog sports movie set in the prehistoric age, all about football, which is incidentally referred to throughout as “football” and thankfully not “soccer”, because it is not set in the United States. The setting is Manchester, unrecognisable in that desolate ancient landscape, although the fact that one character is called “Goona” might hint that north London culture is important as well.
Early Man is wonderfully written by Mark Burton, James Higginson and Nick Park with additional material by John O’Farrell. Their gags have a sublime innocence combined with a worldly...
Lovability, wit and fun – on regular form, Nick Park’s Aardman Animations will always provide these. At their best, they give you hope that our island has a future after all. His latest film is an outstanding family comedy, an underdog sports movie set in the prehistoric age, all about football, which is incidentally referred to throughout as “football” and thankfully not “soccer”, because it is not set in the United States. The setting is Manchester, unrecognisable in that desolate ancient landscape, although the fact that one character is called “Goona” might hint that north London culture is important as well.
Early Man is wonderfully written by Mark Burton, James Higginson and Nick Park with additional material by John O’Farrell. Their gags have a sublime innocence combined with a worldly...
- 1/26/2018
- by Peter Bradshaw
- The Guardian - Film News
Aardman Animations has released the first trailer for its upcoming prehistoric comedy adventure “Early Man.” The animated movie marks director Nick Park’s first feature film since 2005’s Academy Award-winning “Wallace and Gromit: Curse Of The Were-Rabbit.”
Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne voices the lead character, a plucky caveman named Dug.
Read More: ‘Coco’ Trailer: Gael García Bernal Goes Full Pixar in Celebration of Mexican Culture — Watch
Here is the official storyline for the film: “Set at the dawn of time, when dinosaurs and woolly mammoths roamed the earth, ‘Early Man’ tells the story of how one plucky caveman unites his tribe against a mighty enemy and saves the day!”
“Not only is Eddie a joy to work with, his versatility and boundless energy have really helped to bring my new character to life,” Park said last May when announcing the casting of Redmayne. “He embodies the cheeky charm, fun and...
Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne voices the lead character, a plucky caveman named Dug.
Read More: ‘Coco’ Trailer: Gael García Bernal Goes Full Pixar in Celebration of Mexican Culture — Watch
Here is the official storyline for the film: “Set at the dawn of time, when dinosaurs and woolly mammoths roamed the earth, ‘Early Man’ tells the story of how one plucky caveman unites his tribe against a mighty enemy and saves the day!”
“Not only is Eddie a joy to work with, his versatility and boundless energy have really helped to bring my new character to life,” Park said last May when announcing the casting of Redmayne. “He embodies the cheeky charm, fun and...
- 3/16/2017
- by Yoselin Acevedo
- Indiewire
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