‘Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl’ Is As Delightful And Whimsical As Ever

Having been raised on a diet of charming, wholesome British television, Wallace and Gromit have been a staple in my life for as long as I can remember. We had a Shaun the Sheep bobblehead in the family car, and my dad owned an old t shirt emblazoned with with Feather McGraw’s wanted poster. When the trailer for Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl dropped, I was ready to step back into the shoes of my 5-year-old self, and I’m happy to say, I was not disappointed.

Wallace (voiced by Ben Whitehead, after Peter Sallis’s death in 2017) and his constant companion Gromit find themselves once again at the mercy of the calculating and cold Feathers McGraw, who is plotting his escape from a high security zoo after our our cheese-loving chaps foiled his plan to steal the Blue Diamond in 1993’s The Wrong Trousers. Wallace’s new invention, an artificially intelligent gnome named Norbot (voiced by Reece Shearsmith), predictably goes awry, and it’s up to Gromit to get everything sorted out.

Aardman have weaved their signature magic through Vengeance Most Fowl to create something that is as much of a joy for those who’ve never seen Wallace and Gromit, as it is for long time fans. I was worried that adulthood would have erased some of the whimsy of the film, but I was delighted to find how easy it was to lose myself in the silliness of some of the gags. Even the somewhat ham-fisted ones designed to make four-year-olds lose it got a giggle or two out of me.

Throughout my viewing, I was struck by the complete and utter artistry that goes into the Wallace and Gromit films. The care, precision, and attention to detail that goes into every single frame is incredible. Aardman are absolute master storytellers, embruing life and feeling into expressionless hunks of plasticine with the right lighting and camera angles, set to a fantastic score from Lorne Balfe and Julian Nott. As I watched Feathers McGraw formulate his master plan from his prison cell, I was absolutely joyous as I remembered the ways he creeped me out as a young child.

Vengeance Most Fowl is 80 minutes of perfectly balanced nostalgia and wry critique on humanity’s over-reliance on automation. Easily watchable with family of all ages, Wallace and Gromit’s new adventure is an all-round delight.

★★★★

Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl is in cinemas now, and is streaming on Netflix.