I love the Aardman films, but something is amiss in FLUSHED AWAY. Only a few minutes into it, everything feels wrong. Wallace & Gromit are distinctly British, but it seems like a movie about rodents in the sewers should have American characters in New York. Hugh Jackman is not a great voice for the lead, although Kate Winslet is very good as the female lead and Ian McKellan is excellent as the villain. Many of the other British characters sound too similar.
They say that they are mice, but the main characters sure look like rats. One thing Uncle Walt got right is that for a mouse to be a hero, he has to be cute. This movie missed the boat on that one.
The pacing of the film is completely messed up. The second act starts much too quickly (we have no chance to like the main character because we don't even know who he is). It takes too long to get to the bad guy and the female lead, and just when you think the film is wrapping up, the third act starts. Then somehow it still ends with a short running time.
I like making fun the the French as much as anyone, but wow, it's almost sad how much they make fun of the French in this film. Someone has some issues to work out.
Overall, the humor seems to be missing, and Roddy the Rodent is not much of a hero. The clever action of all the Wallace & Gromit films, or even CHICKEN RUN, is completely absent here.
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