Movie Review: "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon" (2019)

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Movie: "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon"

Director: Will Becher and Richard Phelan
Year: 2019
Rating: G
Running Time: 1 hour, 26 minutes

If we're looking for a high-quality stop-motion animated feature to watch, two studios come to mind. The first studio is Laika, who are known for their more mature, darkly-themed family entertainment like "Kubo and the Two Strings" and "ParaNorman." The other is Aardman Animations, a studio that offers lighter films targeted toward younger audiences like "Wallace and Gromit" and "Chicken Run" (though these films can, of course, still be enjoyed by adults). Aardman's latest stop-motion flick comes from first-time feature film directors Will Becher and Richard Phelan, who offer up a new story for a familiar character with Netflix's "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon" (2020). When a spaceship lands on earth, the adorable, very hungry, very lost alien inside the ship shows up at Mossy Bottom Farms. When Shaun and his sheep pals discover the cute little critter, they befriend it, and Shaun takes it upon himself to help guide the alien back to its ship. The other sheep are tasked with keeping the rule-oriented Bitzer the dog distracted so Shaun and his new friend can leave the farm. Bitzer isn't the only thing Shaun and his new extraterrestrial buddy have to worry about. It turns out, a secret government agency is also looking for the lost alien, and they plan on capturing it before it has a chance to leave earth.

Bitzer the dog scolds Shaun the Sheep for playing frisbee in a photo for the Netflix movie "Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon" (2020). (Photo provided by Netflix)

We have to admit, we were a little disappointed by Aardman's last film "Early Man." We did, however, enjoy the previous "Shaun the Sheep Movie," even though we aren't frequent viewers of the series. People who aren't familiar with Shaun the Sheep should know going in that his movies contain little to no dialogue. To us, that's part of their charm! Most of the characters speak in noises, grunts, and quizzical moans. The only being who comes anywhere close to speaking is the newly introduced blue-and-purple-dog-like-alien-creature Lu-La, who uses the phrase "zoom zoom!" to help describe its ship. Even though the characters aren't explicitly speaking, we get what they mean, and we can understand them because of their body language and facial expressions.

"Farmageddon" is a pleasant, engaging, silly, charming, visually-told narrative that we had a blast watching. We instantly fell in love with Lu-La and all of her food-chomping antics. She and Shaun get up to some wild, out-of-this-world (literally!) shenanigans in this installment. It's clear that this movie draws a lot of inspiration from "E.T.," and the filmmakers don't try to hide it. They throw in many references to Steven Spielberg's works throughout the story, including nods to at least "Jaws" and "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." These little touches will help the adults in the crowd stay interested in between bouts of slapstick, pizza jokes, and UFO amusement park gags. As a whole, the story is pretty familiar. We've seen sci-fi exploration/"getting a child home to their parents" scenarios play out in animated films for decades, but that doesn't make this tale any less fun to watch. It's full of bright, vibrant, beautifully animated settings, characters, and frames that come together seamlessly. We hold stop-motion animators in such high regard. The sheer amount of work put into each and every detail is remarkable. The final product is aesthetically pleasing, heartwarming, and compassionate.

In "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon," Shaun the Sheep and an alien named Lu-La enter zero gravity in a spaceship full of pizzas. (Photo provided by Netflix)

While the story might be simple and the jokes might be a bit predictable, we think the stunning animation, the funny jokes, and the solid message about friendship and empathy towards others makes Netflix's "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon" (2020) worth checking out via the streaming giant on February 14th, 2020. It put huge smiles on our faces, and we had oodles of fun watching it.

My Rating: 7.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 7/10
IMDB's Rating: 7.0/10
RT Rating: 98%
Do we recommend this movie: Yes!

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Movie Review: "Ride Your Wave" (2019)

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Movie: "Ride Your Wave"

Director: Masaaki Yuasa
Year: 2019
Rating: NR
Running Time: 1 hour, 34 minutes

A surfer named Hinako begins a romance with a firefighter named Minako after he saves her from the roof of a burning building. They find a connection through the water and discover it has changed and will change their lives in more ways than they could ever imagine. 

Movie Review: "The Addams Family" (2019)

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Movie: "The Addams Family"
Director: Greg Tiernan and Conrad Vernon
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 26 minutes

Morticia and Gomez Addams are chased out of the old country and take residence in a hilltop asylum in which they make their home and raise their family. When a new town called Assimilation is built nearby, the members of the Addams family once again become the target of persecution because they are different.

Movie Review: "Abominable" (2019)

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Movie: "Abominable"

Director: Jill Culton and Todd Wilderman
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 37 minutes

When a yeti escapes from a research facility in China, a teenage girl finds it at her apartment building. With the help of her two friends, they go on a trip to return the yeti to its home on Mount Everest before it gets captured again.

Movie Review: "The Angry Birds Movie 2" (2019)

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Movie: "The Angry Birds Movie 2"

Director:  Thurop Van Orman and John Rice
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 36 minutes

The once-ostracized Red is now the hero of Bird Island. He spends his day protecting it from the pranks that come from their neighbor, Pig Island. When a new threat arises that puts both islands in danger, Red must team up with his old enemies to fight it off.

Movie Review: "The Lion King" (2019)

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Movie: "The Lion King"

Director: Jon Favreau
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 58 minutes

A young lion must find the courage to realize his destiny and to regain his rightful place as king from the evil uncle who murdered his father and stole his throne.

Movie Review: "Toy Story 4" (2019)

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Movie: "Toy Story 4"

Director: Josh Cooley
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

While on a road trip, Woody must rescue Forky, his kid Bonnie's new handmade toy, and get them back to their RV safely before Bonnie and her parents leave town.

Movie Review: "The Secret Life of Pets 2" (2019)

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Movie: "The Secret Life of Pets 2"

Director: Chris Renaud and Jonathan del Val
Year: 2019
Rating: R
Running Time: 1 hour, 42 minutes

Max, Gidget, and Snowball each go on their own separate adventure where they learn to overcome obstacles to help others.

Movie Review: "UglyDolls" (2019)

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Movie: "UglyDolls"

Director: Kelly Asbury
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 27 minutes

Dolls with manufacturing defects are pushed off the assembly line down the pipe to Uglyville. These toys live happy lives, but one doll named Moxy has bigger dreams. She hopes to one day find a child of her own to love. To achieve that goal, she must go through the town of Perfection, where only the most perfect dolls are allowed to move on and become toys for children.

Movie Review: "Missing Link" (2019)

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Movie: "Missing Link"

Director: Chris Butler
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 34 minutes

Sir Lionel Frost goes on a quest to find the mythical Sasquatch to win a bet and to be accepted into the adventurers club. When he meets the legendary creature, he makes a deal with it. He will help this missing link get to his relatives in the Himalayas in exchange for proof of their existence.

Movie Review: "Dumbo" (1941)

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Movie: "Dumbo"

Director: Samuel Armstrong, Norman Ferguson, Wilfred Jackson, Jack Kinney, Bill Roberts, Ben Sharpsteen, and John Elliotte
Year: 1941
Rating: G
Running Time: 1 hour, 4 minutes

An elephant with big ears becomes an outcast at the circus, but the very thing that made him an outcast may have the potential to make him a star.

Movie Review: "Mirai" (2018)

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Movie: "Mirai"

Director: Mamoru Hosoda
Year: 2018
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 38 minutes

A young boy who is unhappy with the attention his new baby sister is getting learns about his family's history and his own future through a series of magic visions.

Movie Review: "Wonder Park" (2019)

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Movie: "Wonder Park"

Director: Apparently no one?
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 25 minutes

A young girl named June uses her imagination to create a splendiferous amusement park. When she enters a stressful time in her life, a "darkness" looms over the park and begins destroying it. Now, she must find a way to fight this "darkness" and restore the park to its former glory.

Movie Review: "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World" (2019)

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Movie: "How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World"

Director: Dean DeBlois
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 44 minutes

When Berk starts to become overcrowded and Toothless becomes the target of a dragon hunter, Hiccup decides to move the village and hopes to find and settle in the mythical Hidden Kingdom his father always talked about when he was little.

Movie Review: "How to Train Your Dragon" (2010)

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Movie: "How to Train Your Dragon"
Director: Dean DeBlois and Chris Sanders
Year: 2010
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 38 minutes

A young Viking befriends an injured dragon, and in the process, learns more about these creatures his village hates so much. His new understanding may help put an end to his village's conflict with dragons, that is, if his father will listen to reason.

Movie Review: "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part" (2019)

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Movie: "The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part"

Director: Mike Mitchell
Year: 2019
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 46 minutes

Emmet must go on a quest to save his friends, who have been abducted and taken to the dreaded Systar system.

Movie Review: "My Life as a Zucchini" (2017)

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Movie: "My Life as a Zucchini" / "Ma vie de Courgette"

Director: Claude Barras
Year: 2017
Rating: PG-13
Running Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes

A young orphaned boy who has suffered years of abuse moves into an orphanage where he and the other children, all with past traumas, learn what it means to be in a loving home for the first time.

"Why are you here? How'd you get stuck with us?" (Image Source)

Don't be fooled by the bubbly, big-eyed characters, "My Life as a Zucchini" is not for kids. Alternately titled "Ma Vie de Courgette," this is a Swiss/French stop-motion animated film directed by Claude Barras and is his first feature-length film. The screenplay is written by Céline Sciamma along with numerous other contributing writers and is adapted from the novel "Autobiographie d'une Courgette" by Gilles Paris. The story is about a young boy called Zucchini (Eric Abbate), whose alcoholic abusive mother was killed in an accident that caused her to fall down a flight of stairs. Zucchini is taken to an orphanage by a police officer named Raymond (Nick Offerman), who feels sorry about Zucchini's situation and becomes his friend. Zucchini now has to adjust to living his life in an orphanage with other kids who have also lost their parents/guardians. He also sometimes has to contend with a bully named Simon (Romy Beckman), who lashes out at the other children due to his own insecure feelings. As time passes, Zucchini begins to acclimate to his surroundings, especially once Camille (Ness Krell) shows up. He immediately becomes infatuated with her, and as it turns out, she may need help from him and the other orphans to deal with her abusive relative.

"Sometimes I dream my mom is alive and I'm all grown up." (Image Source)

When "My Life as a Zucchini" begins, and we see a young kid in a household with a drunk mother throwing beer cans at the television, we initially wondered what we had gotten ourselves into, especially considering what happens next. This is a bittersweet story about abuse and broken homes. That being said, it is also about love and finding family in places you least expect. We are big fans of stop-motion animation, and we really like the character designs and overall look of this enjoyable film. It is simultaneously adorable and dark. Each of the kids has shadows and circles around their eyes, which makes it look like they haven't slept because they are being tormented from within. There are also many moments of fun and laughter, as well as times of love and tenderness. There are also many bits of sorrow and misery, all of which will make the viewer gush with emotion. We learn about Zucchini and all of the other kids at the orphanage. Each of them deals with real issues that are probably too much for younger kids to handle. As adults, we found ourselves really invested in the stories of each of the characters and many of their arcs. We see the growth of each character, especially of the bully Simon, who we start out hating but grow to love over the course of the story.

"I'm happy I was brought here. Otherwise, I wouldn't have met you." (Image Source)

We loved "My Life as a Zucchini." We can absolutely see why this film was nominated for Best Animated Feature at the Academy Awards. You should seek this movie out immediately.

My Rating: 8.5/10
BigJ's Rating: 8/10
IMDB's Rating: 7.8/10
RT Rating: 88%
Do we recommend this movie: Yes!

Please be sure to check out Lolo Loves Films all over the internet!

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Movie Review: "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" (2018)

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Movie: "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse"

Director: Bob Persichetti, Peter Ramsey, and Rodney Rothman
Year: 2018
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 57 minutes

The young Miles Morales has just been bitten by a radioactive spider, giving him superhuman abilities. When Kingpin uses a machine to open an interdimensional porthole, it accidentally brings Spider-People from other universes into Miles's world.

Movie Review: "Ralph Breaks the Internet" (2018)

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Movie: "Ralph Breaks the Internet"

Director: Phil Johnston and Rich Moore
Year: 2018
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 52 minutes

When the steering wheel on the Sugar Rush game breaks, Ralph and Vanellope go into the internet to try and find a replacement on eBay and wreak havoc while they are there.

Movie Review: "Wreck-It Ralph" (2012)

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Movie: "Wreck-It Ralph"

Director: Rich Moore
Year: 2012
Rating: PG
Running Time: 1 hour, 41 minutes

Video game villain Wreck-It-Ralph sends his fellow video game characters into a panic and causes chaos when he leaves his game to find a place where he can be a hero and get the recognition he feels he deserves.