You might not know him by name, but you will easily recognise him by his work. Nick Park is the British director, writer and animator responsible for creating the much loved stop motion animated series Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the Sheep.
He is also the creator of Chicken Run, the highest grossing stop motion animated film ever made. Park’s protagonists are recognisable from a mile away. Their wide eyes and toothy smiles are synonymous with earnestness and compassion.
Early Man, Park’s newest stop motion animated film, is another sprightly jaunt into the life of the underdog and their struggle to coexist with a cold and greedy menace. At the centre of the narrative is Dug (voiced by Eddie Redmayne), a stone age caveman who lives with a misfit but friendly tribe headed by Chief Bobnar (Timothy Spall).
They are forced out of their lush village by a bronze age army led by Lord Nooth (Tom Hiddleston), who declares the stone age to be over. Lord Nooth agrees to give the tribe their village back on one condition; they must beat Lord Nooth’s elite football team in a football match.
Committed to ensuring the safety of his tribe, Dug agrees to the football match.
Along with the help of Goona (Maisie Williams), a Bronze Age street vendor who is barred from playing football despite her enviable skills, Dug and his friends work together to take down the pretentious Nooth.
I enjoyed Early Man because it replicates the defining element of Park’s work; well-meaning individuals use honesty and hard work to take back what is rightfully theirs.
In a world where the cold and the greedy always have the upper hand, watching a flop haired caveman win an elite soccer game reminded me that anything is possible.
Readers also enjoyed this review of Lady Bird.
