Early Man
(2018)Real heroes don't settle for bronze.
Stop-frame animated film set at the dawn of time by four-time Oscar-winning Aardman director Nick Park (Curse of the Were-Rabbit). Features the voices of Eddie Redmayne and Tom Hiddleston.... More
Pint-sized Dug (Redmayne) isn't really cut out to be a caveman. But when disaster strikes and his tribe is driven from its homeland by the mighty Bronze Age, it's Dug, the most inept of the tribe, who proves he's got what it takes and leads them to victory.Hide
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Directed by Nick Park
Starring Eddie Redmayne, Maisie Williams, Tom Hiddleston, Timothy Spall, Richard Ayoade, Selina Griffiths, Johnny Vegas, Mark Williams
Written by Mark Burton, James Higginson, John O'Farrell
Out Now (On-Demand,
DVD or Blu-Ray)
On Demand, DVD & Blu-Ray
Available from 6 providers
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Early Man
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The Press Reviews
Sadly, tragically, Early Man is just not very good. Full Review
An often amusing reimagining of Bronze Age history that, while it doesn't quite match the best of Aardman, is still solid family entertainment. Full Review
It seems a strange thing to say about a film featuring a giant man-eating mallard, but a bit more eccentricity wouldn't have gone amiss. Full Review
Early Man does little to move things on, in evolutionary terms, but - for younger viewers especially - its straightforward storytelling and gentle humour still work a treat. Full Review
Early Man is as charming as they come, bursting with the kind of daffy humor and off-kilter characters that have earned the company a worldwide following. Full Review
Early Man, the latest animated feature from the Aardman studio's star director Nick Park, is about as warming, homey and distinctly British as a mug of hot, sweet, milky tea on a rainy day. Full Review
The marketable Aardman spark of madcap inventiveness is slightly diluted here. Still, it's a very likeable film which should delight younger audiences. Full Review
A ball-tearing, net-busting crowdpleaser, Early Man offers plenty of fun for the whole family. Full Review
Glee runneth over as Aardman go back to the Bronze Age. Full Review
Given this is the company that brought us the never-less-than-brilliant Wallace and Gromit, the wonderful Shaun the Sheep film, it does pale in comparison. Full Review
BY Adam Fresco Flicks Writer
Nick Park returns to stop-motion animation, directing a preposterous prehistoric family adventure full of goofy fun. Charming in its irreverent silliness, it’ll likely appeal more to younger kids than adults expecting Wallace & Gromit layers of satirical appeal. The nutty narrative has cave-dweller Dug (Eddie Redmayne) and Hognob (voiced by Park himself) try to save their Stone Age tribe’s valley from the Bronze Age expansion plans of the villainous Lord Nooth, (Tom Hiddleston in full-tilt fun mode).... More
Fans of off-the-wall British humour will dig that saving Dug’s tribe largely involves football matches, whilst the un-soccered will enjoy the wealth of slapstick silliness, sight-gags, pratfalls and general buffoonery brought to life and timed to perfection, one frame at a time. The lovingly hand-crafted characters get a first-rate voice cast (featuring the likes of Timothy Spall, Maisie Williams, Richard Ayoade, Miriam Margolyes, Rob Brydon, and Johnny Vegas), but the top-notch craft on display is let down by clichéd characters and a plot so predictable it could’ve been lifted from a cave painting.
It’s a shame so many jokes don’t land or feel like lazy puns, but there are plenty of great visual gags. Kids who enjoyed Aardman movies Shaun The Sheep, The Pirates! and Arthur Christmas will have a ball, while Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run fans will miss the sly adult storytelling threaded through far more thought-out storylines. Take the kids, enjoy the stunning handmade animation, forgive the lazy characterisations and Palaeolithic plot, and Early Man is a fun family trip to the pictures for all ages.Hide
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