Three out of
Five stars
Running time:
81 mins
Watchable comedy with colourful animation and likeable characters, but this is a far cry from Disney’s best work.
What’s it all about?
The film opens with the infamous
the sky is falling incident, in which Chicken Little (voiced by Zach Braff) is humiliated when his warnings spark a town-wide panic, only for it to turn out that the piece of sky which hit him on the head was probably an acorn. One year later, Chicken Little is still smarting from the shame, especially because his own father, Buck Cluck (Garry Marshall) didn’t believe him.
However, when aliens invade Chicken Little’s hometown, it’s up to the plucky chicken to alert the townsfolk and save the day. But will anyone believe him?
The Good
Chicken Little definitely has its moments and it’s a lot more fun than, say, Shark Tale. The animation is colourful and lively, if uninspired, but there are several good sight gags and the characters are both funny and engaging.
In addition, the film deserves some sort of credit for its attempt to realise the Gay Best Friend cliché in animated form (Runt). However, the real star of the show is the hilarious Fish Out Of Water, who steals every scene – his inspired King Kong impression is worth the price of admission on its own.
The Bad
The main problem with Chicken Little is the script, which bounces around wildly from teen movie parody to War of the Worlds spoof without bothering to actually hit any of its comedic targets. Consequently, many of the gags fall flat and the film is packed with references which will go shooting over the heads of its target audience.
Worth seeing?
Fortunately, Chicken Little’s running time is short enough to ensure that it doesn’t outstay its welcome. As a result, it’s never less than watchable but it’s hard to shake the feeling that it could have been a lot better.