Ice Age 2. Over The Hedge. Chicken Little. The Wild. Open Season. The Barnyard. Flushed Away. If 2006 is remembered for anything it'd hardly be surprising if the most common recollection is "all those animated talking animal movies." And while Over The Hedge was really good, the rest have hardly been ground breaking so it comes as something of a pleasant surprise that Hoodwinked isn't too bad either. Unlike the previously mentioned movies, it isn't a straightforward adventure story but a multi-stranded whodunnit which is mostly told through flashbacks and also possesses a wicked sense of almost-adult humour.
The closest comparison would be Shrek and while the Green Ogre's film was concerned with putting a fresh spin on fairy tales, Hoodwinked adopts a similar approach for the children's tale of Red Riding Hood. It begins at a crime scene investigation at Grandma's house at what seems like an open and shut case. Red (Anne Hathaway) has found a wolf (Patrick Warburton) in her Gran's bed and on the verge of being eaten, was rescued by a woodsman (Jim Belushi). However, Detective Nicky Flippers (David Ogden Stiers) suspects there is more to the tale and so decides to interrogate them all, each of the four principle characters then proceeding to spin out their own story.
Admittedly, not everything in this movie fits. The woodsman's back-story isn't especially funny and there are a couple of ill-advised musical numbers that jar horribly with the rest of the film, but when Hoodwinked gets it right, it does so with aplomb. Red could have been a highly annoying spunky teenager but Anne Hathaway gives her a sense of maturity and turns her into a charming and engaging young woman. Her initial story is one of the most enjoyable segments and contains an absolutely hilarious incident with an old goat who has to sing everything he says.
The highlight though is Patrick Warburton as the Wolf. He is blessed with some of the best lines of dialogue ("What do you do?" "I'm a shepherd") and his storyline is by far and away the movie's milestone. Warburton is perfectly cast as the sarcastic canine and effortlessly steals the entire film. After that, the woodsman's story only seems dull and while Granny's back-story regains some of the momentum, your thoughts will most likely still be with the wolf.
It's not without it's faults though. Plenty of comments on these pages deal with the animation so I will not dwell on that too much but it is undeniably low quality. The chief problem though is that Hoodwinked sadly isn't as subversive as it could have been. Taking on Shrek was certainly an ambitious aim and even with the frequently hilarious dialogue, it just doesn't quite match it. It is good, but it does feel more like a warm up rather than a main event.
In conclusion then, an entertaining and often very funny movie but one with shortcomings. The animation is admittedly more befitting a TV short than a full length feature, the woodsman is a let down and the songs don't fit, but its strengths overcome its weak points. And if anyone sees fit to complain about the pre-requisite hyperactive squirrel which seems to crop up in every talking animal movie, try not to forget the fact that hyperactive squirrels are really really funny. It may not be as good as Cars or Over The Hedge, but Hoodwinked comes in a worthy third place and is certainly better than a lot of the competition.
The closest comparison would be Shrek and while the Green Ogre's film was concerned with putting a fresh spin on fairy tales, Hoodwinked adopts a similar approach for the children's tale of Red Riding Hood. It begins at a crime scene investigation at Grandma's house at what seems like an open and shut case. Red (Anne Hathaway) has found a wolf (Patrick Warburton) in her Gran's bed and on the verge of being eaten, was rescued by a woodsman (Jim Belushi). However, Detective Nicky Flippers (David Ogden Stiers) suspects there is more to the tale and so decides to interrogate them all, each of the four principle characters then proceeding to spin out their own story.
Admittedly, not everything in this movie fits. The woodsman's back-story isn't especially funny and there are a couple of ill-advised musical numbers that jar horribly with the rest of the film, but when Hoodwinked gets it right, it does so with aplomb. Red could have been a highly annoying spunky teenager but Anne Hathaway gives her a sense of maturity and turns her into a charming and engaging young woman. Her initial story is one of the most enjoyable segments and contains an absolutely hilarious incident with an old goat who has to sing everything he says.
The highlight though is Patrick Warburton as the Wolf. He is blessed with some of the best lines of dialogue ("What do you do?" "I'm a shepherd") and his storyline is by far and away the movie's milestone. Warburton is perfectly cast as the sarcastic canine and effortlessly steals the entire film. After that, the woodsman's story only seems dull and while Granny's back-story regains some of the momentum, your thoughts will most likely still be with the wolf.
It's not without it's faults though. Plenty of comments on these pages deal with the animation so I will not dwell on that too much but it is undeniably low quality. The chief problem though is that Hoodwinked sadly isn't as subversive as it could have been. Taking on Shrek was certainly an ambitious aim and even with the frequently hilarious dialogue, it just doesn't quite match it. It is good, but it does feel more like a warm up rather than a main event.
In conclusion then, an entertaining and often very funny movie but one with shortcomings. The animation is admittedly more befitting a TV short than a full length feature, the woodsman is a let down and the songs don't fit, but its strengths overcome its weak points. And if anyone sees fit to complain about the pre-requisite hyperactive squirrel which seems to crop up in every talking animal movie, try not to forget the fact that hyperactive squirrels are really really funny. It may not be as good as Cars or Over The Hedge, but Hoodwinked comes in a worthy third place and is certainly better than a lot of the competition.