Creature Comforts: Series 2 Part 1
If I were to tell someone who was unaware that the guy (Nick Park) who created Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run also created (and in fact first started out with) Creature Comforts, and if that someone were to be a fan of those two films, they may well rush out to buy Creature Comforts expecting more of the same.
Disk:
If I were to tell someone who was unaware that the guy (Nick Park) who created Wallace & Gromit and Chicken Run also created (and in fact first started out with) Creature Comforts, and if that someone were to be a fan of those two films, they may well rush out to buy Creature Comforts expecting more of the same.
Well they maybe a tad disappointed. This is because Creature Comforts isn’t a feature film, it has no plot or story. Instead it is a collection of short interviews starring animated plasticine animals, insects and birds, they are asked questions on everyday subjects and we get to see their responses and observations on the question asked.
Well actually it is a little more complicated than this. What actually happens is that real life people are interviewed about certain things, that interview is recorded and then the best ones are developed into the animations.
On occasion these are funny, and by funny I mean laugh out loud funny. But for the most part they are merely slightly amusing anecdotes on various, mostly bland, subject matter and observations on life. More often than not it is the background characters that will do something that makes you smile by doing something funny, but ultimately the laughs just aren’t there consistently enough for me.
There is no doubt that it is very clever, and the idea behind to whole thing is an original one but after the first few interviews you begin to wonder when the laughs will begin. For example there is a Welsh Dog, not sure of the breed but it is one of those dogs with folds of skin, well it just isn't funny at all, not in any way shape or form.
Perhaps its me. perhaps my sense of humour is flawed, but the I think Blackadder and only fools and horses are hilarious, i even enjoy Wallace & Gromit, but this just doesnt cut the mustard as far as I am concerned.
The disc itself is presented with four sections. You get to play the episodes which you can either do separately or one by one, bonus materials, behind the scenes or play by character.
Play the Episodes: We get six separate sections to view, they are:
1. Beast in Show: A rabbit tells us about his quest for breeding perfection, a Shetland pony who is after lots of girlfriends, a pig talking about losers, and a bull that is elated when slapped on the back to indicate he has won are amongst a few of the interviews.
2. The Brood: Includes a Seagull telling us about how he feels when his young leave the nest, also a load of Amoeba’s talk about arguing with mum and dad. These are some of the ups and downs or parenthood that are discussed.
3. Pet Hates:The animals tell us about their pet hates and what annoys them. From the pig who doesn’t like having her neck breathed on, to a police horse that poo’s in the path of drunken revellers to soil their shoes
4. Impressions: animals doing impressions of others, an owl that cannot do an impression of itself, and a slug that is a good chicken amongst others.
5. Animals In The 'Hood: crocodiles in Stockton Heath, moles talking about leaks, are a few of the animals telling us about where they live.
6. Sport!: Wrestling mice, the hare and the tortoise and the climbing woodlouse (I think it’s a woodlouse) are a few of the animals that talk about their sporty ways.
Bonus Material
In the bonus section we have a trailer for Wallace & Gromit – Curse of the were-rabbit, I found the picture quality a bit ropey on this trailer compared to the good quality of the main part of the disk. There is no excuse for this being such a recent film.
Rehearsals: limited interest extra which depicts the creators of the show acting out the scenes and then we see the same scene but animated with the plasticine models.
Countryside Short Code: a very short short which tells us about the countryside code. Things such as keep dogs on a lead, take your litter home etc. a good environmental message for people to adhere to but it's over before you even know it.
Making of: This I found to be far and away the best extra, it takes you on a journey of finding out exactly how the creatures are created, as well as the complex methods of shooting a scene. It gives you a real insight into the excellent creativity of the people on the show. The Two women that play the "bats" deserve special mention here, they are superb --- "lifts, noooo i dont have a lift".
Play by Character: these extra should allow you to choose all the scenes from the episodes by character, so if you liked the seagulls for example you could see ALL the seagulls’ interviews. However you only get a choice of four animals in here, so you are limited in what you can choose. pretty poinless really, either have them all or have none.
Overall:
The climbing woodlouse and the wrestling mouse both made me laugh out loud, but they were the funniest things on the disk, whilst I appreciate the commitment and superb creativity of the people involved in the making of the material, the problem there is just not enough real laughs or content on this disk at least not at the RRP. Also a mediocre set of extras mean that you really have to be a fan for it to be a definite addition to the collection.
So if you’re a fan of the previous Creature Comforts, this is more of the same and will be for you, if you are a fan of Wallace and Gromit etc and have never seen creature comforts but expect this to be more of the same then beware.
Review Equipment
Harman Kardon AVR7300 Amplifier
Harman Kardon DVD 22 Multi Region DVD Player
KEF PSW2500 Sub-woofer
KEF Q4 front and surround speakers
KEF Q6 centre speaker
Phillips 30" 30PF9975 LCD TV
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