Fantastic Mr. Fox Reviews (on-going)

Evening Standard: 4 stars. “The resulting film, though, is brilliantly eccentric, a cult classic in the making and a bold choice for tonight’s opening gala of the 53rd London Film Festival… And though Wes Anderson may have cocked a cheeky leg on some childhood memories, he has produced a distinctively individual work of art and entertainment.”

Time Out London: 4 stars. “Like much of Anderson’s work, it’s cool on the eye and cool on the heart.”

Telegraph: “Though his move into animation marks a detour for Anderson, it’s recognisably his film, with its deadpan wit, playful running gags and judicious use of music; there’s a lovely chase sequence early on, set to the Beach Boys’ Heroes and Villains. It’s accomplished work with a cheerful sense of uplift. Not a bad way to kick off a film festival.”

Screen Daily: “If Anderson has a spiritual affinity with Dahl’s written word, he also has a vision of Foxy’s world which recalls Quentin Blake’s illustrations but goes much further; it’s this sustained creativeness that sets Fox apart in a similar way to Nick Park’s Wallace & Gromit. As for the puppets, Fox himself is indeed fantastic; long and lean, standing on tiptoes in his cut-off-trouser-suit and slightly threadbare, he could come from a toy cupboard yet is the perfect incarnation of the Vulpes vulpes who called everyone ‘darling’ in Dahl’s book. When he bares his teeth or shreds his toast it’s worth the price of admission alone.”

Variety: “The film’s style, paradoxically both precious and rough-hewn, positions this as the season’s defiantly anti-CGI toon, and its retro charms will likely appeal more strongly to grown-ups than to moppets; it’s a picture for people who would rather drive a 1953 Jaguar XK 120 than a new one. B.O. for this Fox release will no doubt be closer to that of ‘Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit’ than of ‘Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs.'”

ComingSoon.net: “Throughout the film, Anderson has replaced any obscenities that would appear in the character’s dialogue with the word ‘cuss’… Not only did it temporarily eject the viewer from the world the film had created, but it also seemed entirely inappropriate for a film where much of the audience would be young children. That flaw aside, ‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ is a hugely enjoyable film that combines the highly stylized worlds of Wes Anderson and Roald Dahl perfectly. While it may frustrate those who expect a straight adaptation of the book, the fast pace and quick wit of the film should satisfy most viewers, even if they aren’t fans of Anderson’s previous work.”

Guardian: 4 stars. “Wes Anderson gets his eccentric groove back on with a witty and likeable movie for little kids and their hip older siblings. It’s a demi-Americanised, wholly Andersonised version of the 1970 Roald Dahl children’s tale Fantastic Mr Fox, all about an elegant furry rapscallion pulling off the chicken-chomping crime of the century against three apoplectic farmers… It’s a smart and well-written kink in the furry Dahl tale.”

Independent: 3 stars. “Fantastic Mr Fox has a gently subversive edge that many mainstream animated features lack. It celebrates a hero in Mr Fox who is a habitual thief. With all its imagery of furry creatures down holes, there is a mild erotic charge here too. The dialogue is smart and sassy enough to entertain the adults. Kids should enjoy the antics of the younger foxes, Fox’s son Ash (voiced by Jason Schwartzman), desperate to emulate his feats, and his karate expert cousin Kristofferson (Eric Anderson). It is possible, though, that the film will prove too spiky and idiosyncratic for the mainstream audience that its producers clearly crave.”

Pure Movies: 4 stars. “Fantastic Mr Fox is a warm-hearted, visually striking film that although will appeal primarily to adults, will hopefully also be a success with younger audiences too. It is a bold choice for the Opening Gala for this year’s London Film Festival, but early critical reaction seems strong. Wes Anderson has proved himself once again to be one of the most creative directors working in the film industry today and Fantastic Mr Fox is a stand-out addition to his already impressive list of credits.”

Hollywood Repoter: “Although sometimes too sly for its own good, this great-looking carnivorous caper brings Wes Anderson’s whimsical melancholy to a kids’ classic.Although sometimes too sly for its own good, this great-looking carnivorous caper brings Wes Anderson’s whimsical melancholy to a kids’ classic.”

Box Office: 4 1/2 stars. “A witty script, brilliantly animated with stop motion techniques and wonderfully voiced by a cast led by George Clooney and Meryl Streep make quirky director Wes Anderson’s first foray into ‘toons a major winner and a total delight. Adapted from Roald Dahl’s best selling children’s book about a wily fox whose family life is threatened when he re-enters his “criminal” past, Fantastic Mr. Fox is indeed fantastic in every way. Returns from this Fox for 20th Century Fox should be sweet with an endless afterlife on DVD.”

Times: 4 stars. “You have a children’s film that is concerned mostly with the quiet consistent heartbreak of family life. And yes, the movie is as stylistically meticulous as you would expect from Anderson, with his trademark proscenium framing, baroque production design and standout soundtrack (including the Rolling Stones and the Beach Boys). But it’s the small intimacies — the wiping of a tear from fluffy fur, the fleeting reconciliation of father and son — that suggest the work of a master.”

The Playlist: B-. “It’s undeniably a minor work, but it’s more consistently entertaining and cohesive than either “The Life Aquatic” or “The Darjeeling Limited,” despite its inability to compete with the likes of Pixar in emotional terms.”

In Contention: 3 stars. “The medium of stop-motion animation complements Anderson’s obsessive preoccupation with costuming and set-dressing beautifully: details that can seem overbearingly precious in his live-action work here lend the film a handmade quality that enriches the action rather than stifling it.”

Hit Fix: “…this is a Wes Anderson film in every way.  You can absolutely feel his overall sensibility at play in every detail of what you see onscreen.  The script, co-adapted by Anderson and Noah Baumbach, is a delight, a very funny riff off of the original Roald Dahl source material, and the result is one of the most giddy comedies of the year.”

more soon…