Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget - Review: Looks Delicious, Tastes Reheated

 

No team of filmmakers working today is immune to the pull of sequels or nostalgia, even those working in the clay or plasticine medium like Aardman, which is why we have “Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget,” a sequel to the 2000 original with a new cast, new characters, and a new focus: the fast food industry. 

Following the events of the first film, Ginger, voiced by Thandiwe Newton (“Westworld (2017),” “Crash”), and Rocky, voiced by Zachary Levi (“Chuck,” “Shazam!”), have managed to establish a small community of free-range chickens hidden from the humans of the outside world. However, their rebellious daughter Molly, voiced by Bella Ramsey (“The Last of Us,” “Catherine Called Birdy”), wants to explore the world. She escapes their commune with the help of new friend Frizzle, voiced by Josie Sedgwick-Davies, and the pair are quickly captured and taken to a high security farm where they must be rescued by Ginger, Rocky, and the rest of the gang before being turned into nuggets by returning villain Mrs. Tweedy, voiced by Miranda Richardson (“Tom & Viv,” “Empire of the Sun”). 

Like any other Aardman picture, there’s a high level of play on display here, both in the script and the animation. Director Sam Fell (“ParaNorman,” “Flushed Away”) and writers Karey Kirkpatrick (“Over the Hedge,” “Smallfoot”), John O'Farrell (“Early Man”), and Rachel Tunnard (“Military Wives,” “Adult Life Skills”) fill the world with tons of gags and over-the-top sequences of spy movie parody. Thanks to Aardman’s high quality animations and sense of timing, they all work wonders, adding a thick layer of humor to the already funny script. It works both on paper and visually on multiple levels, without missing any of the studio’s trademark bizarre black humor either. 

The voice cast is up to the task as well, with most returning from the first film. Newton and Levi do an admirably job filling the large chicken feet of their previous voices. Levi feels a bit too jokey at times and Newton feels like she lacks the internal seriousness, but they’re far from poor. Rather, it’s Ramsey that really steals the show. The childhood rebellion that they’re able to inject into the vocal performance is remarkable, and they’re constantly a highlight of the film at large, whether on their own or sharing the screen with others. 

At large, the film manages to be a really fun, light heartedly silly time, but it's hard not to feel like something is missing deep in the center. There’s a very certain kind of soul absent from this picture that has been plaguing the studio’s recent output. The music, from returning composer Harry Gregson-Williams (“Shrek,” “House of Gucci”), is still breezy and intense. The sets are still impressive in scope and scale. But the adventure at large is lacking. The self-seriousness of the original film, the idea that despite being chickens, Ginger, Rocky, and the rest of the coop took their adventure deathly seriously, is missing here. 

Rather, the harrowing moments lack a real sense of seriousness. Is this a nitpick for a film about talking stop motion chickens? Possibly, but when the first film had these elements in droves, they’re definitely noticed when absent. It just results in a film that feels overall more disposable than what came before. It doesn’t mean the film is bad by any means, but it lacks a distinct impact. If the first was a four-course chicken dinner, this one is a really good chicken sandwich. It’s still really good, but it lacks a lot of finer ingredients that the first had. 

There’s something to be said for the craftsmanship on display here though, because even when the film is at its weakest, the craft on display is still staggering. To see a film where truly every single aspect is handmade, down to the tiniest detail of clothing, is still some kind of magic. It really puts it all into perspective when you see a character giving a dramatic monologue and you realize that it probably took a week just to animate them saying one word. Even decades after the first piece of Aardman stop-motion wizardry, it's still an impressive feat. 

Despite its seemingly lower intensity and stakes, “Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget” is still a very fun film and will still put a smile on your face throughout its runtime. But those expecting something as immediately iconic as the first film will be disappointed. It’s an example of a lot of great elements adding up to be less than the sum of their parts, although that sum is still pretty good. 4/5