Fantastic Mr. Fox

FANTASTIC MR. FOX (2009) - Nov. 26, 2009
I have to admit that I was a bit skeptical about this going in -- Wes Anderson is such a great director of live action, it seemed to me like he was just wasting his time dabbling in animation (much like what Zemekis has been doing for the last little while).  Fortunately, I couldn't have been more wrong -- this was an utterly charming film, and the shift from live action to animation has done nothing to dull Anderson's ability to create a really compelling group of characters; this is easily right up there with all of Anderson's best films.  The retro animation style is a bit off-putting when only seen in small chunks, however within the context of the film it works beautifully.  But no amount of great visuals would have helped much if the story were weak -- however, this isn't the case at all.  The film is funny, touching and really enjoyable throughout.  ****