FLUSHED AWAY
UK/US, 2006, 85 minutes, Colour.
Voices of: Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian Mc Kellen, Jean Reno, Bill Nighy, Andy Serkis, Shane Richie, Kathy Burke, David Suchet, Miriam Margolyes.
Directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell.
This is the comedy which has toilet jokes which are suitable for all!
Aardman Studios in Bristol have built up a fine reputation, let along a host of Oscars, for their stop-motion animation features and shorts, the most famous and popular of which are stories of Wallace and Gromit. The Aardman powers that be decided that they would like to do a computergraphic images film rather than use their plasticine, a film with vaster scope, sets and characters than they could do with their usual techniques. They went into partnership with DreamWorks? Animation Studios in California and the end result is a British, very British in plot, characters and style, done with American know-how. They have assembled a fine voice cast led by Hugh Hackman, Kate Winslett and Ian Mc Kellen.
Roddy St James (Hugh Jackman) is an aristocratic rat who lives in grand style in London’s Kensington. While the family is on holidays, he roams the house freely enjoying games with toys standing in for friends. When loudmouthed Sid (Shane Ritchie) suddenly explodes through the toilet, Roddy’s plan to flush him away backfires and it is Roddy who ends up through the sewers into a London he has never seen or known about. It is World Cup final time, England vs Germany (and the screenplay has some amusing shots at the Brits as well as US tourists in Piccadilly Circus making loud comments about the British not knowing how to play football).
Roddy encounters Rita (Kate Winslett) on her boat and with single-handed mishaps destroys it. He meets her family and discovers she is on a mission to save London from an aristocratic boorish toad (Ian Mc Kellen, with Bill Nighy and Andy Serkis has henchtoads) and his snobbish French cousin (Jean Reno).
Will Roddy and Rita be able to save the day? With lots of twists and turns, with Roddy having to admit to Rita that he is lonely,, and with some daredevil stuntery to defeat the toads, all is well.
There is plenty to entertain (even the ads in Piccadilly circus) audiences both old and young. The plot is a familiar one but it highlights some sound messages. The screenplay is witty and the voicing first-rate.
1.British animation, British story? Voices? Themes? Settings? Sensibility?
2.The computer animation style, the vast sets, the action, the water …? The creatures, London settings, action?
3.The voices and the variety of characters, humour, good and evil?
4.The title – and its literal application? Consequences?
5.Roddy, Hugh Jackman’s voice, suave, the rat, living in style, pampered, West London home, its detail, the humans and their going away, petting him? His looking forward to his holiday, but all alone, using the mod cons?
6.Syd, his sudden arrival, the main bursting, his style, language, different from Roddy, the various tricks? Roddy and his thinking he was smart, trying to get rid of Syd, being flushed away himself?
7.The underground city, the parallels with London? The range of creatures, the screaming and singing slugs, the toads? Finding Rita, tough, intrepid, an explorer, her boat? Her personality? Different from Roddy, Roddy’s awkwardness? The situations, the toads, the stealing of the ruby, the ruby being a fake, the machine cable? The visit to Rita’s parents, their characters, nice?
8.The plan, Roddy wanting to get home, promising a jewel? His suspicions of Rita, clearing them up, his feelings towards her, beginning the journey? The chases?
9.The toad, his look, eyes, voice of Ian Mc Kellen, his plan, the ruby, wanting the machine cable, his reliance on his hench-rats, Whitey and Spike and their characters, voices, behaviour? Shrewdness? Criminal?
10.The arrival of le Frog, Jean Reno’s voice, style, cousin of the toad, collaborating with him in the plan, the pursuit, the waterfall, the loss of the boat?
11.The evil plan for the city, the toad and his masterminding it, the day of the football grand final, the humans and their use of the toilets, opening the sewers, flooding the city, flooding the rats and destroying them?
12.The detail of the city, the parallels with London, the rodent advertisements, Piccadilly Circus etc? The football grand final, the defeat of England by Germany? Human fever? The build-up towards the half-time, the toilets?
13.Roddy and his heroics, Toad and the cable, opening the sewers, Rita and her help, the derring-do, the high-flying action, the nitrogen, the toad freezing his enemies, Roddy freezing the water?
14.Roddy and his achievement, an action hero, his happiness with Rita, further adventures? The jokes interspersed throughout the film, the songs, the mime on the mobile phone …?
