'Fox' is 'Fantastic'

'The Fantastic Mr. Fox'

Review: 5/5

Wes Anderson should have made an animated film years ago. His penchant for carefully drawn, introspective caricatures is all the more fascinating with a camera that self-reflexively dollies left and right, up and down, in a calculated whimsy that is an exquisite fit in the animation realm. The fact that Anderson chose to use an archaic, stop-motion style of animation that seems entirely out of place given Pixar's ridiculous monopoly on all things cartoon, should be a credit to the auteur's innate directorial sensibilities. He's a well-regarded eccentric, and is one of the best working American directors today... oh, and have I mentioned his new 'Fantastic Mr. Fox' is the most exuberant of all his work? 

The plot and essential themes are those that are familiar to Anderson, given his wholehearted embrace of 'outsider' protagonists who often find themselves alienated from respected social cliques. They also maintain an unusual desire to execute grandiose, hair-brained undertakings that always go awry. 'Fox' is no different. Mr. Fox, voiced by George Clooney, finds himself aging faster than he would have liked, and convinces an Opossum friend of his to burglar a few of the nearest entrepreneurs, Boggis, Buntz, and Bean. Of course, things don't go as planned, and hilarity ensues... I don't mean that in a sarcastic way. I'm being completely literal. It's hilarious.

With original music by Alexandre Desplat (a perfect compliment to Anderson's decidedly idiosyncratic world), glowing cinematography by Tristan Oliver, proficient stop-motion animation, and, of course, a perfectly formatted script that caters to all things divinely atypical, and with a fitting sense of unity and togetherness, 'Fox' is one of the best films of the year. Animated or otherwise.