Review of Chicken Little

Now I really wanted to like this film. I adore Disney, but along with Home on the Range and The Wild for various reasons it is my least favourite Disney film. Home on the Range was forgettable save some good moments and The Wild while colourful had some derivative elements, but Chicken Little I feel suffered because it tried too hard. Granted, it is visually and technically accomplished, more in the backgrounds and colours than in the character designs. The animation is bright and colourful, though some of the character designs are rather forced at times. The film moves briskly, and it also does have a good idea and some above-decent voice work. However, because it tries so hard, elements get lost in the process. The film does have an uneven tone, and the storyline while trying to fit a lot in such as some references to pop culture and is unfocused unfortunately. Speaking of the pop culture references, sorry I think they are going to date, and the script was often very weak and the ending clichéd. Then there are the characters, I liked Mayor Turkey Lurkey and the title character was spirited enough, but others such as Abby Mallard verged on annoying or flimsy. I wasn't taken with the soundtrack overall either, it did have its nice spots but there are others where you are wondering what on earth? Some of it was very loud to the point it was almost intolerable. So all in all, it is spirited and tries hard, but on the whole sorry it didn't work for me. 4/10 Bethany Cox