Since his debut in 1995’s A Close Shave, Shaun the Sheep has become something of a mascot for Aardman Studios, thanks to the 190 episodes of his titular TV show plus multiple specials, a spin-off its own for Timmy, and a trio of films, the latest of which arrives as a perfectly timed Autumnal treat.
The Beast of Mossy Bottom marks another genre shift, having covered the hero’s journey (Shaun the Sheep Movie) and sci-fi (Farmageddon), we now reach horror, with a charming monster movie. As Halloween approaches, Shaun dabbles with science to grow pumpkins and ends up unleashing a monster that sends the village into a tizzy. It may be simple, but the plot allows space for enough stop motion antics.
Shaun the Sheep essentially boils down to a silent movie, rich in slapstick and sight gags and gloriously not needing a coherent word to be uttered (there are still great voice performances here, fronted by Justin Fletcher and John Sparkes). The addition of references to horrors old-and-new (from silent era curios, through the golden age of Universal Monsters to recognisable lifts from Friday the 13th and Michael Jacksons’s Thriller) gives an added draw for genre fans. But as with the very best gateways to horror, this is a work open to everyone.
Directed by Steve Cox and Matthew Walker, and written by Mark Burton and Giles Pilbrow, there is a wealth of craft and talent here, figures who have rich histories with Aardman. Fifty years in and the studio continues to represent an endearing slice of true Britishness (where else would you find a visual gag around The Wombles or an audio cue from The Archers).
What prevents this from hitting the rarified status of the very best that Aardman has to offer? The film lacks some of the soul of the very best of the studios output (Shaun the Sheep Movie still stands as the best of the Mossy Bottom lots feature length adventures) and this isn’t quite the best horror output from the stop motion maestros (that’s Curse of the Were-Rabbit). Plus the second act sags as the pace drops and we wait for all the obvious pieces to fall into place.
But The Beast of Mossy Bottom is a terrific time for families this Autumn, a charming gateway to the world of horror and further evidence that Shaun is a true asset for the Bristol-based claymation geniuses. I’m sure he’ll be back to get up to more mischief in the near future.
Shaun The Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom is in cinemas from 18th September.
Shaun The Sheep: The Beast of Mossy Bottom
Summary
50 years in, Aardman shows once again to be the all-conquering stop motion superstars, weaving cinematic magic perfect for the whole family.
