Stars (vocally) Ben Kingsley, Isaac Hempstead Wright, Elle Fanning, Jared Harris, Nick Frost, Richard Ayoade, Tracy Morgan, Dee Bradley Baker, Steve Blum with Toni Collette, Simon Pegg and Maurice LaMarche Directed by Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi That’s three for three as stop-motion animation production company, Laika, follows up Coraline and ParaNorman with The BoxTrolls, a fantastical fable of an unusually stacked town troubled by the titular beings. Or so things may seem. Perception is everything where this fable is concerned and like all truly enjoyably good fairy tales or fables, there is an element of darkness that permeates throughout. The nondescript town of Cheesebridge has a rather English air to it, giving it that gothic sensibility that might remind one of Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride. There is a separation of the upper-crust and the plain crusty and grimy where the human society is concerned, while The BoxTrolls themselves are creatures of the dark, living in under-ground caves beneath the town. After all, the original book source is titled “Here Be Monsters.” The environment itself brings about the one singular drawback of the movie - the character design. While residing within that gothic atmosphere, the character designs of the human in particular do make sense, but there is a more ‘clay-mation’ aesthetic on show in comparison to the more clean-cut puppet-like designs of the two previous films Within the world itself, the BoxTrolls do come across as ‘cute’ but out of context, it may not be as appealing. There might be a sense of the crafters trying too hard, although it is undeniably a unique look. For me, it works, but I can see where others might not feel the same. It might take away any sympathy one should have for the two child characters. The story’s focus - strangely - is on the machinations of one Archibald Snatcher (an excellent Ben Kingsley, obviously relishing in the performance) and his quest to rid his town of the BoxTrolls, believing that in doing so will give him a place among the “White Hats” - the upper crust of society who are also considered the Lords of the town. Snatcher is aided by his henchmen, the somewhat sinister Mr Gristle (Tracy Morgan) and the more moderate pair of Mr Pickles and Mr Trout (Richard Ayoade and Nick Frost, respectively) who believe their job is one of justice and good, while occasionally questioning the ulterior motives of their employer, Snatcher. Frost and Ayoade make a brilliant double act, more so in a post credit scene where Mr Pickles ponders on the nature of their existence. Really, stay a while back for that. On the other end of the spectrum are The BoxTrolls, whose lack of speech may have them lumped - unfairly - with Despicable Me’s minions. The BoxTrolls are scavengers and among them is a human child called Eggs (newcomer Isaac Hempstead Wright), who manages to attract the attention of Winnifred “Winnie” Portley-Rind (Elle Fanning), daughter of the man who might be considered Mayor of the town. The voice cast deliver on all counts with Ben Kingsley leading the way. Wright and Fanning manage to keep up, while much of the humour comes more from the banter between Frost and Ayoade. Frost’s constant partner in crime, Simon Pegg, pops by later in the game. Physical humour comes courtesy of the titular trolls themselves and their antics. Directors Graham Annable and Anthony Stacchi do a marvellous job of keeping everything together in terms of the animation and design. A standout sequence is the ballroom dance with the intricate movements on hand. The music by Dario Marianelli flits between the cheekiness of the trolls and the darkness and danger of the story while Eric Idle himself contributes the closing BoxTrolls song. The intricacy of the work is on full display, and that cloying bit mentioned above sheds a little light on the amount of work that was put into the making of this feature. As a movie, it does entertain, and as a fable, it manages to subtly weave in its message. Some parents may feel it’s too dark for their young ‘uns but then, all fables have their dark bits. Again, as with the story and as in the movie, it’s all about perception. Mild spoiler:- Not too sure about having the villain pulling a Creosote; but it does fit into the overall tone of the movie. Rating **** /5
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