Film Review: "Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget" (2023).

"This time, they're breaking in!" This is Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget. This British stop-motion animated comedy film directed by Sam Fell, written by Karey Kirkpatrick, John O'Farrell and Rachel Tunnard, and produced by Aardman Animations. It is a sequel to Chicken Run (2000). Having pulled off a death-defying escape from Tweedy’s farm, Ginger has finally found her dream – a peaceful island sanctuary for the whole flock, far from the dangers of the human world. When she and Rocky hatch a little girl called Molly, Ginger’s happy ending seems complete. But back on the mainland the whole of chicken-kind faces a new and terrible threat. For Ginger and her team, even if it means putting their own hard-won freedom at risk – this time, they’re breaking in!

In April 2018, a sequel was reported with Aardman Animations, StudioCanal and Pathé set to produce. DreamWorks had no involvement due to ending their partnership with Aardman after the release of Flushed Away in 2006. Fell was approached by Peter Lord in 2016 and was convinced to return to Aardman to direct the sequel. Kirkpatrick and O'Farrell returned to pen the sequel. In mid October 2019, the film officially began pre-production. Because very few props and models from the original film survived after being destroyed in a warehouse fire in 2005, Fell and his team resorted to use reference photos from original film's "making of" book. In June 2020, Fell released more details about the sequel, which would follow from the ending of the first film, where the chickens have settled into their new safe area. Molly, the chick of Ginger and Rocky, begins to outgrow the area, just as word of a new threat to the chickens arrives. By early 2021, Zachary Levi, Thandiwe Newton, David Bradley, Romesh Ranganathan and Daniel Mays replaced Mel Gibson, Julia Sawalha, Benjamin Whitrow, Timothy Spall and Phil Daniels. While Jane Horrocks, Imelda Staunton, Lynn Ferguson and Miranda Richardson reprised their roles. Bella Ramsey, Nick Mohammed, Josie Sedgwick-Davies and Peter Serafinowicz rounded out the film's cast. Aardman said that Gibson was not asked to return as Rocky. In July 2020, Sawalha, the voice of Ginger in the first film, revealed Aardman's intention to recast her role, saying her voice now sounded too old. The decision was met with widespread criticism with some finding the decision ageist. At the same time, principal photography commenced. According to visual effects supervisor and executive producer Nick Park, the stop-motion animation used throughout the film was more complex than anything Aardman had done before.

The film stars the voice talents of Newton, Levi, Ramsey, Staunton, Ferguson, Bradley, Horrocks, Ranganathan, Mays, Serafinowicz and Richardson. The film is brilliantly voiced across the board, with special notice to Levi as Rocky, Newton as Ginger, and Ramsey as Molly. With a scene-stealing ensemble, the characters shine for their charisma and are led by three protagonists with hilarious chemistry. 

The film is not just a solid follow-up to Chicken Run, it’s an outstanding achievement in claymation: dazzling in its technical supremacy, wholesome storytelling, and universal humor.

Simon says Chicken Run: Dawn of the Nugget receives:

Also, see my reviews for ParaNorman and A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon.