In this episode, we’re popping off to a Yorkshire chicken farm in 1960s England, where an authoritarian farmer and her dim-witted husband are plotting the deaths of many to make pies. Welcome to Tweedy’s farm, where a determined chicken named Ginger is attempting a most remarkable prison break. So, grab a spoon for digging, beware of the dogs, and don’t believe every rooster who falls from the sky as we break into Aardman Animations‘ stop-motion animated classic Chicken Run.
Peter Lord and Nick Park direct this spirited film partly inspired by John Sturges’ 1963 classic The Great Escape. Starring the voices of Julia Sawalha, Mel Gibson, Jane Horrocks, Miranda Richardson, Phil Daniels, Timothy Spall, Imelda Staunton, and more, Chicken Run is a grim yet hopeful tale of determination, cleverness, and giving a fascist their just desserts. Alongside a team of talented animators, Lord and Park used every trick in Aardman’s book and invented a few more to bring 500 chickens to life on screen. Join us for a brief look at Aardman’s history, the warehouse fire that claimed many of their special props, a peek into the making of Chicken Run, and the future of Ginger and her friends.
Animation Movies Revisited is written and narrated by Steve Seigh and was edited by Jasmyn Evans-Samuels. Adam Walton and Chris Bumbray produce, and Berge Garabedian is the executive producer. Check out more episodes from our Revisited series below! Do you think Chicken Run holds up? Let us know in the comments!