Search - Chicken Run on DVD

MPAA Rating: G Content Advisory: Excellent For Children Movie Release: 2000 DVD Release: 11/21/2000 Format: DVD - Enhanced Wide Screen Letterbox for 16x9 TV Edition: Special Collection Audio Tracks: English Subtitles: English SwapaDVD Credits: 1 Number of Discs: 1 Run Time: 1 hrs 24 mins Studio: DreamWorks Members Wishing: 5 Genres: Adventure, Children's/Family, Adventure Comedy, Escape Film, Family-Oriented Adventure

Aardman Animations, the British clay-animation studio that created a cult sensation (and won three Academy awards) with its short subjects featuring Wallace and Gromit, presents its first feature film, a mixture of comedy and adventure. Mrs. Tweedy (voice of Miranda Richardson) operates a chicken farm, where most of the birds have resigned themselves to a short and uneventful life of producing eggs and ending up as the main course of someone's Sunday dinner. But when Rocky (voice of Mel Gibson), a rooster from America, arrives on the farm, things begin to change. Rocky soon finds romance with a hen named Ginger (voice of Julia Sawalha) who longs for a better life and has been trying to find a way out of the farm for some time; together they devise a plan to escape to freedom. However, Rocky and Ginger soon find themselves racing against the clock when Mrs. Tweedy decides it's time to turn the entire flock into chicken pies. Nick Park, director of the Wallace and Gromit shorts, co-directed Chicken Run with Peter Lord, who produced several Aardman projects and created animation for the TV series Pee-Wee's Playhouse. The voice cast also includes Jane Horrocks, Phil Daniels, and Timothy Spall. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide

Mel Gibson - Rocky
Julia Sawalha - Ginger
Miranda Richardson - Mrs. Tweedy
Jane Horrocks - Babs
Lynn Ferguson - Mac
Imelda Staunton - Bunty

Dreamworks' "fowl" take on The Great Escape arrives on DVD in an elegant edition that is sure to please all comers. The picture is stunningly clear, presented in a 1.85:1 anamorphic widescreen format with rich, textured colors. The sound is Dolby Digital 5.1, offering tremendous depth and clarity. But while these features alone make this a worthy purchase, it's the extras that will have people flocking to the stores. =Chicken Run offers a witty commentary from directors Nick Park and Peter Lord and a pair of documentaries. While the documentaries both feature largely the same material, it's interesting to watch the painstaking process of bringing claymation characters to life. There is also a "read-along" feature, which is a storybook retelling of the film designed for younger viewers, as well as the usual trailers, production notes, and bios. Also of note are the dozen "Easter Eggs" hidden throughout the film's menus. Click on any of these to find interesting tidbits on the making of the film. This DVD is one that truly has broad appeal: from animation fans to movie buffs or kids, there is something here for everybody. ~ Jeremy Brown, All Movie Guide