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We all know the story. Chicken Little got hit on the head by an acorn, got the whole town into a panic by proclaiming "The sky is falling," and then suffered humiliation for his mistake. Clearly, the little guy is in need of some redemption - and, thanks to the folks at Disney - he finally has it. He really did get hit on the head by a piece of the sky - actually, a cloaking panel from an alien spaceship. Redemption doesn't come quickly, however. A full year after the original embarrassing incident (which never faded into the background, thanks to billboards, a book, and a forthcoming movie about the whole fiasco), it happens to Chicken Little again. Even with friends to verify the event, no one believes him yet again, not even his father. It's a terrible thing for a child to tell the truth and have one of his parents not believe him. The trauma of that feeling, even more than the continuing public embarrassment, has haunted Chicken Little ever since the original incident. Buck Cluck loves his son, and he tries to be a good single father to him, but he's really not there for Chicken Little in the bad times. That gulf between an otherwise loving father and son is really the emotional crux of this story, carrying with it a meaningful message to both children and parents alike. Michael Eisner did at least one good thing during his time at Disney - he saw the original image of Chicken Little as a female and changed the minds of the filmmakers on that score. From that point on, it was smooth sailing - due largely to some wonderful casting for the voice actors. I think Zach Braff is great as the voice of the little hero, but Joan Cusack and Steve Zahn are pretty much perfect as the voices of Abby "Ugly Duckling" Mallard and Runt of the Litter, respectively. With all of their comedic antics, these two characters (along with the amazing Fish Out of Water), really make this a movie that kids are sure to love. Garry Marshall brings Chicken Little's dad to life, while a whole cadre of talented stars, including Patrick Stewart, Amy Sedaris, and Don Knotts, make even the minor characters delightful. The only little issue I might have with this film is the music, and I only say that because a good bit of it goes back two or three decades. When Runt starts doing Bee Gees and Gloria Gaynor songs to keep up his courage, few kids are going to recognize the music - maybe the filmmakers just threw this stuff in as a little extra for adult viewers. As usual, Disney proves quite generous with the extra features on the DVD. You get the obligatory behind-the-scenes look at the making of the film, three alternate openings and a deleted scene, the music video of Shake Your Tail Feathers by The Cheetah Girls (featuring Chicken Little, Ugly Duckling, and Runt getting down with their bad selves), a music video (not to mention karaoke and sing-a-long versions) of One Little Slip by the Barenaked Ladies, a trivia-related game of "Where's Fish?" and sneak peeks at gobs of upcoming Disney releases. The alternate openings are interesting, reflecting the fact that the filmmakers were unsure at first how to introduce the film to the audience, and one of them is quite special indeed, as it features the late Don Knotts narrating the classic tale of the unfortunate little chicken. I'll never be too old to enjoy a good animated film, and the sort of 3D animation that brings Chicken Little's world to life is still quite an amazing thing to see.Read full review
This movie retells the old story of Chicken Little, of course, in a family friendly way -- that's actually pretty remarkable these days. This story is good for a laugh and it's got a little bit of values thrown in for good measure. A father who cares, in spite of the generation gap misunderstandings; friends who stick together and keep believing, even when things seem pretty unbelievable; and parents -- space aliens -- who truly love their...offspring. Give it a try. We don't buy too many movies that the whole family can watch over and over, but this is one we made sure to add to our library.
I purchased this movie after renting it from the video store and finding that my son (who is 2) and husband really enjoyed it. I tried to buy a used copy at the video store, but by the time I tacked on the cost of my rental I had spent more than buying a new copy. My goal was to get one on e-bay that would cost me less than the used one (including what I paid for rental). I got this copy pretty cheap. It's a fun, cute movie. We all know the story... Chicken Little claims the sky is falling, but in this story there is a lot more action and adventure than you recall from your mothers version of this story. Personally, I love the goldfish and the pig. They steal their scenes repeatedly. (I really have no complaints about this dvd.)
Chicken Little rips off too many other movies. The kid with something to prove to his dad was done with Nemo. The animals in need of therapy--Madagascar. The lost alien needing to find his home--Stitch. You can go on and on finding similarities. In fact, if your child insists on watching it, it might be fun to check out all of the ideas they borrowed from other movies. Some of the characters become annoying. They went the wrong with with this movie. The moral of Chicken Little was not to lie because when you need people to trust you--they won't--they'll think you are lying. But that is not explored in this movie. Chicken Little, although he is so cute with his big head and bold ambitions, loses his personality because he has such difficult issues with his dad. The adult neurosis humor is lost on kids and not appealing to adults. Maybe a good one to rent but not to own.Read full review
Now if your a 3 year old this movie, just like all the others it's a hit (Nate my 3 year old nephew just loved it) he laughed at things I didn't really think were funny but thats a 3 year old, He loved the Chicken little character and now believes all chickens are like that, so from a 3 year olds point of view it was good, but he isn't as interested in watching it 20 times like "Cars" or "Toy Story". Nate is our best critic if a movie doesnot hold his interst then it is not worth getting.If it has motercycles or rockets in it and animals that talk and act silly he wants to watch it.(as all 3 year olds do,I hope)This one was full of action with the rockets and all the motorcycles etc so it kept him somewhat amused. Now my opioion Chicken Little marks an important first for the Disney company. It's their first fully in-house developed CGI feature after they announced the closure of their long standing award winning traditional hand drawn animation studio. Setup in a time period where Pixar's distribution contract was up in the air, this was Disney's attempt at creating a CGI masterpiece. Sadly where this film lacks is the exact area where Pixar succeeds and that's interesting and engaging story telling aimed primarily at kids but still fun for their parents and other adults who might have to take their kids back to the theater three or four times. It's not offensive or painful to watch for adults but it's pretty unmemorable. Even though most of us adults have heard and remember the story. Although we only really watch these movies for the enjoyment of the kids right so I guess sitting through this was fine I have had to sit through worse.As adults we expect the animations at its best and this just wasn't up there like the others Simply put, an animated movie for the kids more then the parents.Read full review
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