Talkie Zoo: FANTASTIC MR. FOX

This is a story by the children's author Roald Dahl, who also wrote Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009; PG) is the story of a fox who has promised Mrs. Fox he will change his thieving ways after the two of them are nearly caught and killed in a henhouse raid. He finds a job as a column writer for a critter blurb, they have a son, Ash, and things are going well until he decides he wants to try one last raid -- at the farms of the notorious and very mean Boggis, Bunce, and Bean.

In the meantime, his nephew Kristofferson comes for a visit because his father has double pneumonia. Kris is a very laid back and highly intelligent young fox who excels at sports, does yoga and meditation. Ash, who wants to be an athlete, pretty much excels at nothing other than being a rebellious, spitting, smart mouth young teen fox. Mr. Fox tends to extol the virtues of Kris way too much and allows him in on the plans to rob the farmers. Watch as Mr. Fox's plans endanger all the woodland creatures, and how they unite to save themselves and restore peace.

During the story, you will meet Kylie the opossum, a mean and nasty rat, and other characters that will engage you. It's not a film for young children, though, due to the incidences of violence, smoking, and language that is sometimes right down the toilets. However, I think children 10 or 11 and up would get a kick out of it, as well as adults. I know I did!

This stop-motion animation has been very well done, I must say. While it isn't the CGI many of us are familiar with in most modern animated films, the attention to detail in the characters' fur, mannerisms, and facial expressions is exceptional. Oh, and you should also know that some very famous people played the voices: