{"id":28023,"date":"2024-12-30T17:35:18","date_gmt":"2024-12-30T22:35:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cinemadailyus.com\/?p=28023"},"modified":"2025-01-14T11:03:24","modified_gmt":"2025-01-14T16:03:24","slug":"wallace-gromit-vengeance-most-fowl-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cinemadailyus.com\/?p=28023","title":{"rendered":"Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

\u00a9Courtesy of Netflix\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Gromit is a good dog and a resourceful problem-solver. Many Gen X\u2019ers have a long-standing affection for him, because they have watched Gromit and his \u201cowner\u201d Wallace (who is more like a silly roommate) since their 1989 debut, 35 years ago. Arguably, the intuitive canine also shares Gen X-like attitudes towards technology. Gromit is keenly aware of the potential dangers of Wallace\u2019s new inventions. Yet, he quickly adapts to each contraption, devising ways to set wrongful applications right. At least that is what happened in the 1993 short The Wrong Trousers<\/strong>. Hopefully, Gromit will do so again when his old nemesis returns in their new animated feature, Nick Park & Merlin Crossingham\u2019s Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl<\/strong><\/a>, produced by Aardman Animations<\/a>, which premieres this Friday on Netflix.

Usually animated penguins are cute, like in Happy Feet<\/strong>, but fans know Feathers McGraw is one tough customer. The sinister flightless bird often disguises himself as a chicken, by squeezing a rubber glove over his head. Unfortunately, McGraw is equally adept at exploiting the security flaws in Wallace\u2019s inventions, like when he hijacked the inventor\u2019s mechanical pants in the aforementioned short film. Providentially, the quick-thinking Gromit foiled his attempt to steal a giant blue diamond. Since then, McGraw has been imprisoned in the local zoo.<\/p>\r\n

<\/ins>\u00a0

Life went on as usual for Wallace and Gromit. Unfortunately for Gromit, that meant a constant parade of more inventions from the prolific Wallace. For his latest, the well-meaning tinkerer created Norbot, a mechanical gnome that completes all the garden work Gromit finds so relaxing, in record time. When Norbot\u2019s sculpted shrubberies go viral, Wallace starts earning good money by renting out his services. However, Gromit instinctively distrusts Norbot\u2019s relentlessly chipper demeanor.<\/p>\r\n

\"Wallace<\/p>\r\n

\u00a9Courtesy of Netflix\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Of course, Norbot represents a perfect target for Feathers McGraw, who manages to hack into Wallace\u2019s system from his zoo-prison, resetting the Gnome-android to a decidedly evil nature. Soon, Norbot replicates himself into a robotic gnome army, commencing a crime-wave that Wallace automatically takes the blame for. Not surprisingly, the soon-to-retire Chief Inspector Albert Mackintosh remains as clueless as he was in Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit<\/strong>. As usual, Gromit must rely on his wits to save himself and Wallace from the havoc wreaked by the Norbots.

Once again, Wallace and Gromit face a dire situation, but Vengeance Most Fowl<\/strong> features the same gentle humor that made Park\u2019s stop-motion franchise so widely beloved among animation fans. This marks the first Wallace & Gromit production since the death of Peter Sallis, the longtime voice of the eccentric inventor, but Ben Whitehead (who provided supporting voices in Curse of the Were-Rabbit<\/strong> and Matter of Loaf and Death<\/strong>) is a worthy successor. Indeed, Wallace sounds just as endearingly befuddled as always.

Yet, it is the way the stop-motion Gromit so eloquently expresses his thoughts and emotions, entirely without dialogue, that has always made the series so special. It is worth noting he happens to be a beagle, like Snoopy, which gives the breed bragging rights for two of the most enduringly popular animated dogs. Many dog-owners say their pets keep them sane. In Wallace\u2019s case, that is the literal truth, which is partly why Wallace and Gromit continue to resonate so deeply with viewers.<\/p>\r\n

\"Wallace<\/p>\r\n

\u00a9Courtesy of Netflix\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Beyond general dog-love, Vengeance Most Fowl<\/strong> benefits from Park and Mark Burton\u2019s clever writing and an archly sly sense of visual whimsy. Movie fans will catch cheeky homages to cinematic classics like Cape Fear<\/strong>, Aliens<\/strong>, and the James Bond<\/strong> franchise. There are also plenty of cameos and hidden references that allude back to previous Aardman releases.

Yet, for young viewers who will not notice or care about hat-tips to prior films, Vengeance Most Fowl<\/strong> still works as an inventive and good-humored animated caper. More than anything, Wallace and Gromit entertain viewers, in the best tradition of animated dogs and their ostensive owners. Like its predecessors, it is absolutely impossible to be anything less than charmed by Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl<\/strong> when it starts streaming this Friday (1\/3) on Netflix.<\/p>\r\n

\"Wallace<\/p>\r\n

\u00a9Courtesy of Netflix\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

Grade: A-<\/p>\r\n

If you like the review, share your thoughts below!<\/strong><\/p>\r\n

Here’s the trailer of the film.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\r\n