Chicken Little a Big Success
Grade: A-
Ok, let’s get the company backstory out of the way and then get to the review. Pixar, the digital animation company that brought us “Toy Story” and “Finding Nemo,” has worked with Disney in the past. In fact, their contract ran out recently and the two entities have been in negotiations. But Disney’s creation of a digital production department kind of implies that they don’t want Pixar anymore. “Chicken Little” is the first product out of Disney’s new creation and everyone wondered if it would fly.
But it doesn’t fly. It soars. So chances are good that Pixar and Disney will now go their separate ways. But really, it’s hard to see the bad in all this. Pixar certainly won’t churn out poor movies because of a distributor change and now we’ll get more quality digitally animated movies.
“Chicken Little” is a quality film. Disney’s strong opener is unpredictable as it opens where you’d think it may end. The story opens with the famous scene in which lively Chicken Little (voiced by Zach Braff of “Garden State”) warns townsfolk that the sky is falling. No one believes him, including Little’s well-meaning dad, Buck Cluck (voiced by Garry Marshall of ‘Happy Days’). As the film progresses, Little can’t escape his poor reputation and his dad pleads with him to avoid attention at all costs. The charge is pretty hard to keep, though, when another piece of sky falls on Chicken Little. The story takes an interesting turn as aliens are apparently responsible for the atmospheric decline and the two cultures clash in an entertaining third act.
So, Disney once again flexes its storytelling muscles – this time exploring how a far-fetched claim might affect a father-son relationship. This is the type of story targeted for a family audience; it has a theme parents will appreciate and events kids will enjoy.
And while the film is strongly familial, its postmodern juxtapositions make for an enjoyable flick – even for jaded students like us. Cultural and social references abound inside this animal world, providing laugh after laugh. The film jabs at politicians, education and even Hollywood, though in typically watered-down Disney style. Dreamworks’ equivalents, like “Shrek,” are definitely less subtle.
Also of note is the animation. Though it lacked the fluidity and vibrancy of Pixar animation (see “Finding Nemo”), “Little’s” animation was still impressive. The aliens were especially creative, looking something like a cross between the creatures from “War of the Worlds” and that machine from “The Incredibles.”
Disney has made a great first impression with “Little.” It’s an insightfully human story wrapped in postmodern wackiness. And, who knows, maybe Disney’s competition is just what Pixar needs to keep up their great work.
Chris Blakesley is a film critic for the Utah Statesman. Comments can be sent to him at cblakes@cc.usu.edu.