Directors: Kirk De Micco, Chris Sanders,
Starring: Nicolas Cage, Emma Stone, Ryan Reynolds, Catherine Keener, Cloris Leachman, Clark Duke,
Running Time: 98 minutes
Certificate: U
Before modern man walked the Earth, there were cavemen. With sloping brows and small brains, it’s amazing to think how we evolved into such intelligent creatures. But enough of the facts, as this is no drab and dreary documentary. Instead, it a fast and colourful animated tale that preaches some valuable life lessons. However, those life lessons are issues that I’m sure many children are getting bored with hearing. It’s lucky then that THE CROODS contains enough comedy to make it an enjoyable ride for most ages.
THE CROODS are a family lead by the oppressively cautious father Grug (Cage). He believes anything new leads to certain death, and it’s better to be safe than sorry. Of course, he has a daughter, Eep (Stone) who is a free spirit and wants a life where she can explore. When her father argues that he keeps them alive, Eep fires back with “That’s not living!” A strong message and the theme of living a life worth living and taking chances permeates throughout. Being family entertainment however, it is a very one-sided message. All the gambles pay-off at some point, and it would have been nice to remind the children that failures can and will happen.
Eep eventually meets the catalyst of the story, Guy (Reynolds), a handsome and charming adventurer who conflicts with Grug in every way imaginable. Cue a blossoming romance, messages about family, and if you love something then you have to let it free. If the recurring story motifs don’t sound like your cup of tea then don’t fret as there’s a huge visual feast to indulge in. The designs are fantastic throughout. Beautiful tropical settings filled with bizarre and creative creatures fill every frame. There wasn’t a single creature I was disappointed in and it would have been just a enjoyable to watch 2 hours of animals on parade. From a multi-coloured tiger, to terrifying piranha birds, it is a world that welcomes a sequel so that more explorations can take place. Even the designs of the humans deserve a lot of credit, especially for the heroine Eep, who isn’t made inexplicably “sexy” when compared to other animated female characters. She is a cave girl and she looks like one too.
Despite the fantastic designs and colours, being a modern CGI feature film that was presented in 3-D at the cinema, it means we are also forced to endure many items being thrown at the screen. Lots of the action sequences seem to try and replicate an adrenaline filled theme park ride, which is all well and good for big screens, but in the home it highlights a lack of inventive construction regarding the build-up of tension.
In terms of humour, THE CROODS is more hit than miss. There are plenty of laugh out loud visual gags, as well as some truly funny lines, but there are jokes that are unfortunately run into the ground. Guy’s pet named Belt (who doubles as a belt), has a funny moment where he gives a high-pitched dramatic “Dun Dun Duuuuuuun”, but by the end of the film he’s done this joke 4 times and sapped all the humour from it. With great vocal talents and a natural chemistry between the characters, THE CROODS is a delightful family film that may not break down any boundaries, but at least it tries very hard.
THE CROODS is released on DVD and Blu-ray on 9th December.
