Throw Back Thursday: Fantastic Mr Fox. An Interpretation Of A Childhood Classic, By Those Patronising Adults.

Wes Anderson's interpretation of Roald Dahl's childhood classic, Fantastic Mr Fox, which hit cinemas in 2009, was highly anticipated by me as soon as I saw the first trailer. Somewhat of a 'Dahl-O-holic' growing up, the beloved story of a witty Fox, consistently outsmarting the three despicable farmers, held a soft spot in my heart. And I presume, the hearts of many others. Therefore, as I raced to cinemas filled with childhood delight, I was not prepared to leave the cinema somewhat confused and flustered. Revisiting the picture I know understand where the problems are.

I am by no means insinuating that Fantastic Mr Fox is a bad film on the whole. In many ways revisiting the picture consistently and many years after, it's charm has warmed on me as I have grew older and wiser. However, I can state that Fantastic Mr Fox is a bad film for its target democratic. With the major factor that lets this picture down being, one of my favourite director Wes Anderson. This is a fine line to tread, as by no means is Wes Anderson doing anything wrong, more so being ignorant to the demands of his target audience. I mean when was the last time you saw a child, between the age of 5-12, enjoy a joke about existentialism. If your child has, well done to you.

The wonderfully quirky, sometimes very upperty, style of direction sadly does not convert well to an audience whom are more concerned with sophisticated cinema. What is left is a pulp of smugness, that for many younger views would find alienating, then be expected to understand the definition of alienated. On the one, there are moments of slapstick and out-there humour that, powered on by a  joyfully enjoyable soundtrack, do transfer well. For instance, the blueberry scene. But overall, this is a film that just wont shut up. Now, being an adult I get it, and quite enjoy the fast paced dialogue, but for the desired age range that this film was aimed at it's like being hit repeatedly round the head with a thesaurus.

However, to the older audience a paradox emerges, because the best aspects of this film for me now, and presumptuously many members of the adult community, are those that are negatives for the younger generation. Although comments will be flying of the children's head faster than machine gun fire, many fans of Anderson's work will be comfortably at home. Clooney, giving credibility to his silver fox nature, handles the wit of Mr Fox with wonderful professionalism. As well as the Ocean's Eleven actor, this is truly a star studded cast, with performances ranging from the sassy nature of Meryl Streep's Mrs Fox, to the intimidating, and oh so British, Michael Gambon handling the villain of the piece Farmer Bean. All contribute tremendously, and no one seems left behind or out of depth.

But, the main positive, revisiting the film five years after its release, is Anderson himself. The director really excelled himself in his first outing into the wonderful world of stop-motion. The medium has a incontestable beauty, compared to its computer generated counterpart. And placed in the hand of the master of quirk, the results are terrific. The mellow, and welcoming colour pallet of golden browns, capture the glowing Autumn scenery of the British countryside. This along with the angular tracking shots, and fixed cuts, trademarks, of Wes Anderson's well known tool kit, only adds to the charming atmosphere.

Fantastic Mr Fox is undoubtedly a good film, but who perceives it as entertaining is where the conflict lies. No one would want the David Fincher's next murder mystery, to not appeal to the target demographic, but be much loved by everyone under the age of 5. Although I'm being hyperbolic (welcome to the world of film reviews), a similar scenario is happening all be it in a more disturbing reverse. As the adults are laughing, whilst the children are sat there baffled scratching their noggins, at a film that is about a talking fox who steals food from farmers. Anderson, as always has created a piece of art, but the heart of this film that should appeal to the target demographic is bogged down with consistent circumlocution. That although wonderful for those who can understand it, is nothing but alienating for those who are not expected to understand it in the first place. A paradoxical film, that would produce the same results if Einstein had wrote a finger puppet show, yet still enjoyable to any fan accustomed to Anderson's previous work.

My Score: 7.5/10
IMDB: 7.8/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
Did You Know?: Altogether, 535 puppets were made for the film. Mr. Fox had 17 different styles alone, and each of Mr. Fox's styles had to be done in six different sizes. He has 102 puppets alone.