Rated
PG (Some Action/Peril and Rude Humor)
Running
Time: 1 Hour & 31 Minutes
Cast
(voice)-
Owen
Wilson-Reggie
Woody
Harrelson-Jake
Amy
Poehler-Jenny
Keith
David-Chief Broadbeak
Jimmy
Hayward-Ranger/President of the United States/Hazmats/Additional Voice Talent
Colm
Meaney-Captain Myles Standish
George
Takei-S.T.E.V.E.
Dan
Fogler-Governor Bradford
Kaitlyn
Maher-President's Daughter
Carlos
Alazraqui-Amos
Robert
Beltran-Chief Massasoit
Jeff
Biancalana-General Sagan/Hazmats/Additional Voice Talent
Danny
Carey-Danny
Carlos
Ponce-Narrator/Alejandro
Directed
by Jimmy Hayward
 |
| Owen Wilson and Woody Harrelson voice Reggie and Jake, two turkeys determined to change history and keep their kind off the menu on Thanksgiving. |
Note: Screened on Saturday, October 26, 2013 at Regal E-Walk Stadium 13.
Pixar,
DreamWorks Animation, Sony Pictures Animation, Illumination Entertainment, Blue
Sky…the list of animation studios competing at the box office continues to grow
and now we have REEL FX entering the fray with "Free Birds," their
first feature-length animated film to be released in theaters. Founded in 1993 by
former ad man Dale Carman and currently based in Dallas, Texas (previously Fort
Worth), REEL FX's body of work has largely been focused on commercials. In fact,
you may have seen one of them without even realizing it. The award-winning AMC/Coca-Cola
commercial "Magic Chairs," which plays before every film at all AMC
theaters, was created by them. As for feature film work, REEL FX was strictly an
effects-for-hire studio, assisting in direct-to-video fare like the "Open
Season" sequels but they're starting to branch out into theatrical releases
(such as last year's "Cirque du Soleil: Worlds Away" from director Andrew
Adamson) and create original content rather than depend on licensed material.
One of the projects the studio is currently working on is "Book of
Life," which is set to be released in late-2014 and has Guillermo del Toro
serving as one of the producers. With "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2"
having already run its course, "Free Birds" is effectively the only
choice for family audiences until Disney's "Frozen" arrives on the 27th.
Directed by Jimmy Hayward (who also helmed 2008's "Horton Hears a
Who!"), "Free Birds" isn't particularly inspired despite its oddball
premise and is utterly predictable in regards to the story department but it
remains an amusing ninety-minute diversion, with the animated film benefitting
from solid voice acting and some decent slapstick scenes.
Burdened
with the knowledge that his kind serves as the main course every November on Thanksgiving,
Reggie (Owen Wilson) tries to convince his fellow turkeys that they're being fattened
up just to be eaten but his warnings sadly fall on deaf ears. Ostracized from the
coop, Reggie finds himself rescued by the President of the United States (Jimmy
Hayward), who has arrived to pardon a single turkey from being turned into a cooked
meal and chooses him at the behest of his demanding daughter (Kaitlyn Maher). Taken
to Camp David, Reggie quickly discovers the joys of trashy telenovelas and delivery
pizza but his days of lazily lounging about grind to a halt when he is kidnapped
by Jake (Woody Harrelson), a crackpot turkey that leads the so-called 'Turkey
Freedom Front,' of which he is the only member. Armed with the 'Sacred Time Knob'
(really just a regular door knob), Jake's plan is to take turkeys off the menu
forever by traveling back in time to the first Thanksgiving. Infiltrating a
secret government facility, Reggie and Jake board an egg-shaped time machine dubbed
S.T.E.V.E. (George Takei) and travel back to Plymouth Colony circa 1621. Their
mission immediately hits a snag when they become targets for turkey hunter Captain
Myles Standish (Colm Meaney). If Reggie and Jake are to succeed in changing the
course of history, they'll have to rally the seventeenth century turkeys, led by
Chief Broadbeak (Keith David) and the brother-sister team Jenny (Amy Poehler) and
Ranger (also Jimmy Hayward), to their cause.
As
their first animated feature film to be released in theaters, REEL FX's
"Free Birds" never rises above the level of a Saturday Morning Cartoon
and the script, written by Hayward and Scott Mosier (from a story by David I.
Stern and John J. Strauss), seems to be cobbled together by committee. The
concept of time-traveling turkeys is novel in and of itself and has echoes of 1984's
"The Terminator" and 1989's "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure"
but the rest of the film isn't as inventive as its premise suggests and quickly
falls into predictable banality. Reggie is, of course, our archetypal reluctant
hero who would rather sit around and stuff his face with pizza than help Jake,
who is hinted to be just a little bit
mentally unstable with his talk of how his mission was given to him by 'The Great
Turkey' (i.e. God). The episodic plot has a clearly defined three-act structure
and despite dealing with time travel, the stakes feel low-key and is more befitting
of a television animated special. Also baffling and somewhat disconcerting is
the way Reggie and Jake's ancestors are depicted, with them dressed in Native
American garb…just because. Even its themes are confused, as the film closes
with a pro-vegetarian, pro-fast food message, proudly sponsored by Chuck E.
Cheese's.
There
are attempts to pull at our emotional heartstrings but the moment feels unearned
and stands in stark contrast to the film's zany slapstick shenanigans and non
sequiturs. The reliance on silly behavior is what saves "Free Birds"
from being a total disaster, providing some measure of amusement against the bland
and generic story. Most of the humor comes at the expense of Jake, whose
intense need to one-up Ranger offered some chuckles and led to a bit where the
two end up dancing with each other. However, a few of the jokes are terribly dated.
The President is clearly modeled after Bill Clinton and it's strongly hinted that
he's having an affair with his intern. This jab is about fifteen years too late,
Hayward. As for the CG animation and 3D, it's workmanlike. There's nothing particularly
distinctive or visually exciting about the picture but it gets the job done,
considering its $55 million production budget.
The
voice acting is solid and stands as one of the film's stronger aspects, with
Owen Wilson bringing an amiable presence to reluctant hero Reggie through his laidback
line delivery. Woody Harrelson appears to be having a ball as Jake. His sheer
enthusiasm when voicing the dim-witted turkey single-handedly elevates the picture
from being a total waste of time. Amy Poehler is charming as always, although
there's a slight hint of boredom in her voice-work. Keith David brings his usual
brand of gravitas in what is inherently a silly film while director Jimmy Hayward
has some fun with a cavalcade of bit roles that include Ranger and the President
of the United States. Finally, there's George Takei as the egg-shaped time machine
S.T.E.V.E. and yes, he does get to say his famous catchphrase. Ironically,
"Free Birds" also stars Colm Meaney, another "Star Trek"
veteran.
Released
on November 1, 2013, "Free Birds" has received overwhelmingly
negative reviews with 21% on Rotten Tomatoes. Critics found it to be 'creatively
moribund,' with the film begging 'unfortunate comparisons with the dim-witted
fowl that inspired it.' Although it played in the most theaters and faced
little competition amongst family audiences, "Free Birds" only
managed to earn a middling $16.2 million and will likely get lost in the
shuffle once "Frozen" is released. The advance screening didn't exactly
draw a huge crowd either. Is this 'the greatest turkey movie of all time' as
one of the posters proudly claims it to be? The answer is 'absolutely not' but "Free
Birds" packs in enough laughs to please the kiddies for ninety minutes while
parents won't feel like they need to cover their ears or gouge out their eyes. As
mentioned in the beginning of this review, it's an amusing diversion, no more
and no less.
Final
Rating: 3 out of 5
Jake:
We're going back in time to the first Thanksgiving to get turkeys off the menu!
Reggie:
Who are you talking to?
Jake:
This guy right here. He totally gets it. See how he's nodding?
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