Tags
Modest Project Packing Some Memorable Moments
Unknown to many, the middle of the decade represented a very rocky period for our pampered friends at Disney in terms of their market share in the highly competitive arena of computer generated animated feature films. It turns out that much of their prior success in the category was thanks in no small part to the efforts of Pixar. Well when the two companies couldn’t come to an agreement of terms, it was looking like “the Diz” may have to seriously consider a Pixar-less future!
What resulted in those turbulent times were a few less-than-stellar Disney branded CG-features like 2006’s The Wild, 2005’s Chicken Little and of course the film being reviewed here, 2005’s Valiant.
While in no danger of being mistaken as the next massive budget Pixar blockbuster, Valiant was able to attract some 179 modelers, animators, shaders, and texturers at Ealing Studios in London. Valiant, a product of Vanguard Animation has the distinction of being the first CGI film to be made in Britain.
With a budget of $35-mil, Valiant had a conspicuously low cap when compared to most other CG-animated features of the era (especially for those with a major studio attached to the project). 106 weeks in production, it was finally released to the UK in May of 2005 then enjoyed Stateside release August of that same year. It was released on DVD in December of 2005 and at the time of this review’s writing, has grossed nearly double its initial budget, making it a studio success (despite totals that still look only like a small fraction of most CGI feature’s initial budgets).
Inspired by true-to-life stories of carrier pigeons trained to carry vital information for the allied forces across the English Channel during World War II, this film’s story centers on the life of a young pip-squeak pigeon named Valiant (voiced by Ewan McGregor), who volunteers to fight for his country from German oppression.
Despite being physically unsuitable, he manages to join the Royal Homing Pigeon Service (RHPS), an elite group of heroic carrier pigeons. Because the RHPS has been nearly depleted of reserves, they are desperate for new recruits, and as such Valiant and his ragtag group of flunkies find themselves on nearly-immediate assignment as F-Squad.
The mission they embark upon after minimal training is to fly to occupied France and deliver a message from the French Resistance back to London. They meet with French Resistance mice Charles De Girl (Sharon Horgan), master of sabotage Rollo, and the head of Resistance to retrieve the important message.
However, this is no flight in the park, as they soon discover, when the evil German Nazi falcon General Von Talon (voiced by Tim Curry) and his group of enemy falcons intercepts the message in transit back to England. The mission changes from high-risk couriering to simply surviving the Second World War.
In all, especially considering the film’s setting, Vanguard managed to pull off a pretty impressive effort of capturing the scale of war without violence or gore of any kind. The characters are well done enough (especially that of the title character, Ricky Gervais as dirty-bird Bugsy and Hugh Laurie’s heroic Gutsy) to keep even the younger viewers enthralled without the benefit of the subtle historical charm.
The visuals are certainly passable, even now, with the only complaint coming in the form of rather bland backgrounds (especially compared to the modern trend of 3D integration). However the character models are unique, requisitely adorable and very well animated.
Pacing can best be described as brisk, as after all, a 76-minute runtime places this one on the shorter end of the spectrum. Further disappointing the DVD’s entertainment value is that the disc contains virtually no extras. Expect the total experience to last a hair over an hour and fifteen minutes.
Scoring is also passable without instances of praise or complaint. The mood and feel is always set era-appropriately and the sound effects are nice and crisp (especially when enjoyed on a modern surround sound system).
In all the critics have been fairly harsh with this film since its inception and I too went into it expecting a bleak, dolled up attempt at a history lesson but came away pretty squarely entertained. It’s true that the film does nothing to totally blow audiences away, it can just as honestly lay claims to do nothing overly offensive either.
At the end of the day, viewers looking for a pretty fun romp that actually integrates just enough historical setting to separate it from the rest of the pack, will likely come away with something to appreciate. The fact that it pays tribute to the efforts of real-life animals that have made a difference in the outcomes of human wars is just an added bonus in the film’s investment value.
CG Movie Review 