Flushed Away Review

If you think you've sat through about all the animated animal movies you can stand for this year, then you might want to think again, because "Flushed Away" is one of the good ones. Although it's entirely digitally animated, it's modelled on the style and characterisations of Aardman Animations' stop-motion movies ("Wallace and Gromit", "Chicken Run"), which works surprisingly well.

Roddy St James (voiced by Hugh Jackman) is a pampered pet mouse who lives a life of lonely luxury in a Kensington mansion. When his owners go away, the house is invaded by a slobby sewer rat named Sid (Shane Ritchie), who promptly flushes Roddy down the toilet. Landing in the sewer system, Roddy discovers a huge underground city (looking exactly like London) and meets Rita (Kate Winslet), a streetwise mouse who agrees to help him find his way home. However, when Roddy and Rita uncover a sinister scheme by the mouse-hating Toad (Ian McKellen), they set out to foil his evil plan, whilst evading the clutches of Toad's dim-witted henchrats (Bill Nighy and Andy Serkis) and a deadly hired mercenary known only as "Le Frog" (Jean Reno).

As you'd expect from an Aardman / Dreamworks co-production, the animation is terrific. The set-pieces are fast-moving and exciting, while every frame is jam-packed with visual gags. As a result, the jokes come thick and fast and the witty script ensures that there plenty of adult-oriented jokes thrown into the mix to keep the grown-ups happy. In short, with its perfect blend of colourful characters, exciting action sequences and hilarious gags, "Flushed Away" is a treat for adults and children alike.