Film review: The Angry Birds Movie (U)

Strip back the pristine visuals, once meticulously hand-drawn, and most animated films are hard-wired with an important life lesson to cherish come the end credits.
Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.
Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.

The Lion King: you can’t run away from your responsibilities; Beauty And The Beast: don’t judge someone by their appearance; Frozen: don’t let naysayers hold you back from chasing your dreams; Inside Out: feeling sad is a natural part of growing up; Monsters, Inc.: mummy fibbed when she said the scary creature under your bed isn’t real.

The Angry Birds Movie, a feature-length animated spin-off from the addictive smartphone games, tears out a new page from the self-help manual: it’s OK to get mad as long as you can channel that aggression in a positive direction. The central character of Clay Kaytis and Fergal Reilly’s film certainly spits feathers in the pursuit of a greater good.

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Screenwriter Jon Vitti peppers this haphazard, but energetic flight of self-discovery with a barrage of dreadful puns and jokes that will inspire groans as giggles.

Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.
Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.

Thus, one anger-management therapist bird proudly advertises herself as a free-rage chicken, pigs aspire to wear Calvin Swine underwear, and a poster advertises Kevin Bacon’s return to the stage in... Hamlet.

Red (voiced by Jason Sudeikis) is an outcast on Bird Island, where the rest of his flightless flock tweet peace and harmony.

An unfortunate incident with an unhatched egg lands Red in court where Judge Peckinpah (Keegan-Michael Key) sentences him to a course in anger management led by perky clucker Matilda (Maya Rudolph).

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Fellow attendees include wide-cracking live wire Chuck (Josh Gad), who can move at superbird speed, the aptly named Bomb (Danny McBride), who self-combusts when surprised or stressed, and hulking Terence (Sean Penn), who communicates in booming growls. Red resists Matilda’s techniques because, as he reminds his brethren, “We’re descended from dinosaurs. We’re not supposed to be nice.”

Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.
Undated Film Still Handout from ANGRY BIRDS. See PA Feature FILM Reviews. Picture credit should read: PA Photo/Sony. WARNING: This picture must only be used to accompany PA Feature FILM Reviews.

When a ship full of pigs led by smooth talker Leonard (Bill Hader) arrives on Bird Island, supposedly in peace, Red is the only inhabitant to sense impending disaster.

Other birds fail to heed his warnings and when his doom-laden prophecy comes to pass, Red joins forces with Chuck and Bomb to locate the island’s mysterious protector, Mighty Eagle (Peter Dinklage).

The Angry Birds Movie is a glossy promo for the games and associated merchandise, showcasing the different birds and their associated powers, but it’s also a lot of fun so long as you ignore the flimsy and predictable plot.

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Animation quality doesn’t soar to the dizzy heights of Pixar, but co-directors Kaytis and Reilly maintain a brisk pace and the screen shimmers with bright colours.

Vocal performances are solid and Demi Lovato’s cover version of the Gloria Gaynor discoball classic I Will Survive flaps up the feel-good factor.

Rating: 3/5

Out on May 13

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