Early Man is the
latest film from Aardman Studios, the British animation company who’ve been one
of the mainstays of stop-motion animation since the early 70’s. They got their
start doing commercials and music videos (most notably the revolutionary video
for Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer”) before hitting it big with the critically
acclaimed Wallace & Gromit
shorts. They’ve managed to hold their own against animation giants like Disney,
Pixar and Dreamworks by simply being the only major studio churning out Claymation in
the age of CGI, occasionally releasing films such as Chicken Run, Wallace & Gromit and The Curse of the Were-Rabbit,
Shaun the Sheep and the severely underrated Creature Comforts. Early Man
probably won’t rake in the same numbers as any of those mainly because it had
the misfortune of opening on the same weekend as Black Panther, (although I heard it did pretty well in the UK) but
is still an entertaining example of Aardman’s aesthetic.
Our story takes place in the prehistoric past and follows Dug
(Eddie Redmayne), a happy-go-lucky caveman whose tribe lives peacefully until
their valley is invaded by a tribe who’ve moved on to the Bronze Age, led by
the snobbish Lord Nooth (Tom Hiddelston). The tribe is exiled to the badlands
so the valley can be mined for ore, but Dug and his pet boar Hobnog find their
way to the city where they discover the entire culture is centered around
football (that sport we bloody yanks call “soccer” for some reason). Dug
challenges them to a match to get the valley back, and with the help of a bronze
age girl (Maisie Williams) who dreams of playing the male dominated sport, must
teach his entire tribe how to play the game, even though they’re all as dumb as
a bag of rocks.
So it’s a sports film disguised as a caveman comedy. I’ve
heard of worse premises, and if there’s anyone that can pull off something so
silly, it’s Aardman. It’s always refreshing to see old-school animation on the
big screen, especially Claymation. I love seeing the fingerprints on the models
or the hair and fur shifting and rustling between every frame is something that
gives it the authentic handcrafted feel that you can’t get with most modern
animation. It’s also nice to see a kid’s comedy that focuses more on physical
and sight gags, which is something Aardman always excelled at. As snobbish as
it may sound, it really is the kind of animated film they just don’t make
anymore. They’re not fired at you with the rapidity of their previous work, but
there were some chuckles to be had at a few Flintstones
style twists on modern technology. Some are simple gags like using tiny
alligators for clothes pins or like a twist on the origin of football involving
where cavemen try to pass a hot meteor around, a messenger bird that functions
like the howler note from Harry Potter,
and an especially uproarious gag involving a duck that I dare not spoil here.
Aside from their animation, one of the trademarks of Aardman
Studios, or at least their best work, is taking a goofy premise and either
playing it completely straight or taking it to its most absurd conclusion. Wallace & Gromit in The Wrong Trousers
is about a penguin with a gun who hijacks a pair of mechanical pants to pull
off jewel heists, but they play it like a Hitchcock thriller. The Curse of the Were-Rabbit is played
like a horror film. Unfortunately, that appears missing in Early Man, as it’s premise is pretty straightforward. Once you get
past the visual gags, rock puns and references to British football culture that
will more than likely fly right over most American viewers’ heads, it’s pretty
much a basic sports comedy, complete with training montages and a ragtag team
of underdogs beating a team that would slaughter them in a real match. It’s The Big Green by way of The Flintstones. If that sounds like
your bag, by all means, have at it.
Bottom line, while Early
Man doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel, it’s still a dry, charming
comedy that your kids will probably get a lot out of, especially if they’re
into football. Unfortunately, it will be inevitably demolished at the box
office by Black Panther like I said
before, but I have a feeling it will find a following once it finds its way to
Netflix. Speaking for myself, I’d much rather have another season of Creature Comforts.
7/10, rent it/stream it
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