Voices George Clooney, Bill Murray, Meryl Streep, Michael Gambon, Jarvis Cocker

This Fox is really cool ... thanks Wes

Wes Anderson: auteur. Director of comedies unique in tone, he laces the likes of The Royal Tenenbaums, Rushmore and The Darjeeling Limited with melancholic characters, and recounts their stories with a strong personal voice.

He is a man who works within his own strict, self-defined boundaries, with a focus on familial relationships utilising a cast of acting talent and collaborators with whom he feels comfortable.

So it came as a surprise to learn he had signed up to direct an animated version of the Roald Dahl classic children’s tale Fantastic Mr Fox.

Could this be Wes Anderson selling out?

Certainly not, because while Fantastic Mr Fox is a massive departure in medium for the kooky filmmaker, stylistically, its pared-down feel and elements such as a focus on the dysfunctional family, a downbeat tone and deadpan humour mixed with outrageous silliness make it typical Anderson fare.

The story takes the basic original Dahl plot revolving around Mr Fox (George Clooney) and his family as they struggle to survive in the face of three angry farmers – Boggis (Robin Hurlstone), Bunce (Hugo Guinness) and Bean (Michael Gambon). This trio want to put a stop to Mr Fox pilfering their produce. 

Weaving in a sub-plot involving an over-achieving nephew and a cousin-based jealousy scenario equivalent to sibling rivalry, Anderson embroiders a plot that isn’t quite fleshy enough to sustain a feature film.

The result is a sweet little picture that is never quite sure of its target audience, although whether this is a criticism or not largely depends on your own take.

Anderson has once again assembled some of his much-admired regular collaborators – namely Bill Murray, Jason Schwartzman and

Owen Wilson (in a cameo). There is also some stellar talent including Clooney and Meryl Streep.

But their vocal presence signals their physical absence, leaving you to lament the fact that you can’t see these class acts doing their thing. At the root of this is the fact that much of Anderson’s comedy stems from the physical appearances of his characters and their facial expressions and tics, however low-key.

In an industry obsessed with CGI, the animated style of Fantastic Mr Fox is delightful and a joy to behold.

Quirky aspects such as a non-diegetic insert featuring an animated band of musicians headed up by a Jarvis Cocker-alike singer (voiced by the man himself) and the cute tunnelling scenes and dancing sequences layer on the charm.

Anderson deserves kudos for resurrecting the stop-motion style of animation and making it work so well with Dahl’s extraordinary form of storytelling. While Fantastic Mr Fox might not qualify as the year’s best animation, it will undoubtedly go down as the coolest.

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