Introduction
Hello, fellow adventurers! Blaziker is here for yet another rather interesting adventure and this time, we got three more animated movies to explore, and all had a common theme: they’re all centred around animals! Yes, I know there is one animal-based movie with Kung-fu elements, but considering the movie will be only out a week later in Singapore (from the release of this review), these three animated movies I will be covering will do for now.
The first movie, Goldbeak, is a 2021 Chinese animated movie that is releasing just recently internationally since last year, centring about a young eagle, raised by a chicken family, venturing out of his village with his adopted chicken sister to discover his origins. I was honestly not planning to watch this movie until I founded this movie by accident one day. In addition, while it was released in 2021 in China, it was only released in other countries (in English dub) since last year. Now that I saw the original Mandarin dub of this accidental find, is this worth recommending despite its sheer obscurity?
The second movie, Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberita, is the sequel to the beloved 2012 Belgian animated movie and sees the bear and mouse duo returning to Ernest’s country to fix his broken violin. When they discover that music is banned in Ernest’s country, they stay behind to fight for music to be made legal in the country again. I love the first movie and I honestly did not expect a sequel to be made, so imagine my surprise when it was announced that Ernest and Celestine 2 was in works, even without the involvement of director Benjammin Renner who decided to help with Illumination Entertainment for last year’s Migration. Will this be yet another hit?
The third and final movie, Puffin Rock and the New Friends, is the movie adaptation of a well-beloved Netflix animated series courtesy of the legendary Cartoon Saloon themselves, the studio behind so many classics including 2022’s My Father’s Dragon which I reviewed (in collaboration with Northern Ireland-based Dog Ears), with Oona the Puffin and her old and new friends teaming up to find the final Little Egg before a massive storm hits Puffin Rock and puts the island in danger. Long before Bluey, Puffin Rock was the definitive preschool series that was so amazing, even some mature animation lovers (myself included) raved about this series, most of which came down to the involvement of Cartoon Saloon themselves. Now, with a brand new Puffin Rock movie, is this proof that Puffin Rock can be a great movie on top of a well-beloved preschool animated series?
So, without further ado, let’s set off for yet another adventure!
Goldbeak
Key Information
- Director: Dong Long
- Animation Studio: Liang Zi Film
- Country of Origin: China
- Rating: PG
- Release date: 1 October 2021 (In China)
Trailer
Story and Characters
Let’s get straight to the elephant in the room: when it comes to one major criticism about the movie’s writing, it is that Goldbeak felt predictable. In fact, in terms of concept, the story in Goldbeak is something that I had seen in multiple movies, whether mainstream or non-mainstream, but this time involving birds. In fact, this movie has elements seen in other bird-based animated movies such as Richard the Stork (aka A Stork’s Journey), both movies involving a bird of a different species growing up in a species different from their own. This is not to mention a rather abrupt and unsatisfying ending that takes away the excitement I had during the final act of this movie.
However, if I were to give this movie credit, it is that unlike Richard the Stork, Goldbeak felt more cohesive in terms of its writing as there are not much plot holes to be had unlike Richard, complete with having a surprisingly emotional third act that ties this movie together. It also helped that the characters, while fairly typical, there is enough development and depth from those characters without requiring much exposition, which is already a step up from lack of character development in a few foreign CG animated movies. The voice acting is pretty nice, but not the most mind-blowing voice acting for sure.
Animation
Chinese animated movies have generally improved in terms of both animation style and quality over the last few years, showcasing a variety of different styles that take calculated risks when needed, such as Deep Sea, Chang An and I Am What I Am. Admittedly, while not all Chinese animated movies are great animation wise, there is significant improvement in the animation quality on average. Goldbeak is no exception.
One thing I dislike about Goldbeak is that some of the background animations felt a bit dull, especially in certain night sequences where the scenes felt a bit too dark for me to make out what was going on. In addition, a couple of the flying animation felt rushed, which would explain the slightly stiff flying animation in those scenes.
With that said, compared to other foreign CG animated movies, the animation quality is not too bad. The character designs felt detailed and well-realised without being too uncanny, and most of the flying and action sequences are pretty good for foreign CG animated movie standards.
Yes, it is far from being as good as top-tier Chinese animated movies but comparing it to other bird-based foreign CG animated movies, the animation is pretty decent.
Soundtrack, Other Elements and Level of Enjoyment
While a lot of the Chinese animated movies I covered had epic songs and musical scores, I am not expecting the soundtrack from Goldbeak to be a masterpiece. That said, the soundtrack is pretty decent, with its theme song pretty good for what it was and an upgrade from the usual B to C-grade songs you often hear in foreign CG animated movies.
As for my level of enjoyment, I was ready to dismiss this movie as yet another foreign CG animated movie to miss out, considering the number of foreign CG animated movies I covered for the past few years. However, I was genuinely surprised by how decent Goldbeak is overall as while it is predictable, the execution of its character development and animation took me off guard, not to mention being pretty mature without being too juvenile for my taste.
In conclusion, do I think Goldbeak is a masterpiece? Definitely not, but I was honestly engaged over how much of a surprise it is.
Overall Thoughts
I would honestly never thought about this, but wow, Goldbeak spoke to me despite knowing what to expect.
While Goldbeak is a rather predictable animated movie from start to finish with a rather abrupt and unsatisfying ending, not to mention the roughness in some of its background animation, Goldbeak managed to be engaging enough for me to appreciate how surprisingly decent this movie turned out to be. The characters have enough development and maturity to stand out, the final act and reveal turned this movie on its head and the character animation is pretty great despite being from an unknown animation studio.
It is not every day that I underestimate a foreign CG animated movie, but I let my guard down while Goldbeak soared into new heights when I failed to notice. Easily one of my most pleasant surprises of the 2024 season so far.
Blaziker’s Hot Sauce Rating
Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberita
Key Information
- Directors: Julien Chheng and Jean-Christophe Roger
- Animation Studios: Folvari and Melusine Productions
- Country of Origin: France and Luxembourg
- Rating: PG
- Release date: 14 December 2022 (in France)
Trailer
Story and Characters
If the first Ernest and Celestine movie focuses on them trying to live their own lives, then this one focuses on Ernest’s backstory and his origins and I got to say, I think it’s a fine effort when it comes to the writing.
One issue I had for the sequel was the lack of emotional depth that made the first one so well beloved, which makes this one slightly less heartwarming compared to the first. In addition, the final few minutes of this minute could have been tidier, as it felt a bit of a jumbled mess in the final act, which is a shame given how excellent the writing was in the first movie.
With that said, the chemistry between Ernest and Celestine still remains the focal point, just like in the first movie, as they remain the driving force that propels this movie forward. Their personalities radiate throughout the movie, as do Ernest’s family and other characters in Ernest’s hometown of Gibberita who all play an important role in the movie too.
As usual, the comedy is subtle but well-time and well-paced. Just like with the first, A Trip to Gibberita does not rely on tired or cheap jokes at all and focuses on solid joke delivery and build-up to the gags presented throughout the movie. This is why the jokes in most French movies are great because they are very different from the usual tired jokes from typical animated movies meant for the family audience. The messaging about art censorship is well-conveyed in this one, something I value a lot since art censorship plays a role back in Singapore (which censors quite a good number of stuff), so it hits me more than usual.
Animation
Once again, the animation is top-notch with its watercolour pastels and hand-drawn animation style that is simple but pleasing.
Something that this sequel does better than the first one, despite the same animation style, is that composing and character designs does look cleaner than the first and the movements are a bit more dynamic. Still, it is the familiar animation style that you would expect from an Ernest and Celestine movie.
One other thing I also loved was the lighting, as there is a solid contrast between the lighter and darker scenes that help to prevent cheapen the movie any further, especially with some night scenes that look like it came from a painting.
I honestly had not much to complain about the animation style. It is that solid and showcases that not all animated movies need to be 3D CG animated, because simple 2D hand-drawn animation can work wonders if executed very well.
Soundtrack, Other Elements and Level of Enjoyment
Just like in the first movie, the soundtrack plays an important role in the movie, and the score and soundtrack did not disappoint. The orchestral pieces play to the beat of every scene near perfectly and show that simplicity is what makes this sequel great.
As for my level of enjoyment, while I will admit that I prefer the first movie over this one, there were many elements that I loved in this movie and honestly, it was so entertaining that by the time I realised, I had already made it close to the end of the movie. If I am having fun with the movie regardless of the technical quality, it is likely that I will give that movie a high score in the “Level of Enjoyment” department.
Overall Thoughts
While there were clear issues regarding it, Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberita is nevertheless a great animated movie that matches the original in most areas.
Admittedly, Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberita did not have the strong emotional weight that made the first movie so beloved among the animation community, and there were some issues on the cohesion the movie’s writing, especially towards the end. With that said, this movie still has the same elements that made the first movie great: Ernest and Celestine, and the other characters have great personalities. In addition, this movie has hilarious gags that felt natural without trying too hard, the watercolour animation is spectacular as per usual, and the soundtrack is excellent.
While it is not as great as the first one, this is still a great animated movie that reminds viewers why the 2012 original is one of the best French hand-drawn animated movies of the 2010s.
Blaziker’s Hot Sauce Rating
Puffin Rock and the New Friends
Key Information
- Directors: Jeremy Purcell and Lorraine Lordan
- Animation Studios: Cartoon Saloon, Dog Ears
- Country of Origin: Ireland, United Kingdom
- Rating: G
- Release date: 22 September 2023 (In the United Kingdom)
Trailer
Story and Characters
Given that I had watch a good number of the Puffin Rock episodes, one fear that I had is that the movie will most likely be an extended episode, but no, Puffin Rock and the New Friends is more of an actual movie adaptation with enough new material to warrant one.
Compared to the usual Puffin Rock episodes, this movie felt more cinematic with a slightly expanded plot to accommodate the new characters that debut in this movie (which would hopefully mean a season 3 is on the cards) and that the script was specifically written for feature-length movie standards, which makes this so much better in terms of the writing compared to some movie adaptations of animated series such as last year’s Running Man: Revengers.
In addition, what makes this movie stand out compared to other usual movie adaptations of some preschool animated movie series is that this movie does not feel condescending and dumbed down to fit the intelligence of regular preschool children, which makes this movie enjoyable for the adults as well, proving that you can produce a preschool series that even adults can enjoy. Yes, certain moments are clearly meant for preschool standards and the plot may be too simple, but the tone helps to prevent it from being a turnoff for those that outside the intended audience.
In fact, this movie surprised me in talking about hard-hitting subjects in a manner the intended audience can understand without losing the meaning at all, whether it is climate change or the refugee crisis, making it a bit more mature than what you expect from a movie adaptation of a preschool series. This already puts it above most of the preschool series movie adaptations.
Speaking of the new characters, most would be familiar with the regular cast of Oona, Baba and the other critters, but the movie focused on the new characters which helped given that they had enough depth for the audience to fell in love with them as much as Oona and the other mainstays. Of course, Chris O’Dowd returned to narrate the movie, and helps to sometimes carry the narrative when needed, with a bit of well-mannered snarky commentary in between.
Animation
If you had watched Cartoon Saloon’s previous movies before, you would expect the same signature hand-drawn animation to showcase in this movie and indeed, it may be the same animation style, but there is a reason Cartoon Saloon is one of the best non-mainstream animation studios in Europe with 2D hand-drawn animation.
As usual, the hand-drawn animation for the animals and the backgrounds are just spectacular. You can tell the team at Cartoon Saloon put in a lot of effort to produce the animation in a way that they intended even though it is technically a side project while they worked on the upcoming animated movie Julian (which looks set to be the most progressive animated movie they ever done). The character designs are simple, but cute and very distinct, the backgrounds are gorgeous as usual, and the overall quality is excellent as per Cartoon Saloon’s standards.
See, this is why I prefer the hand-drawn animation style in Puffin Rock and the New Friends rather than poorly detailed and nauseating look of certain preschool animated series that I will not mention, because this animation style is engaging to not just the intended preschool audience, but even adults as well who loved the previous Cartoon Saloon movies.
Soundtrack, Other Elements and Level of Enjoyment
I do not have much o say about the calming and atmospheric soundtrack, nor the small musical numbers, in this movie, because they did the job in setting the tone for the various movie sequences quite well, though not as well as the movie’s top-notch writing and animation.
As for my level of enjoyment, even as a fan of the Puffin Rock series, I had to temper my expectations when it came to reviewing movies. However, my tempering disappeared within the first 10 minutes of the movie, and I loved how heartwarming and high quality this movie despite being clearly a movie adaptation of a preschool animated series. It goes to show that with great writing, you can still produce a good movie adaptation of a preschool series that even the typical adult audience that had to endure most animated movies meant for kids will most likely love. Just like with the aforementioned Ernest and Celestine: A Trip to Gibberita, this felt like a warm hug that just feel so comforting.
Overall Thoughts
Unsurprisingly, this is yet another win at the hands of Cartoon Saloon, even if it is not the most complex work they had ever produced.
Puffin Rock and the New Friends proves that it is possible to produce a great movie adaptation of a preschool animated series by simply nailing the basics. Despite the rather simple plot, the writing is solid with the new characters getting their time to shine without overshadowing Oona, Baba and the rest of the regular characters, the animation is once again classic Cartoon Saloon realness in the best way possible, and the soundtrack does its job.
Cartoon Saloon has yet to produce a flop throughout their existence, and I cannot wait to see their next movie, Julian. Keep it up, Cartoon Saloon!
Blaziker’s Hot Sauce Rating
Conclusion
Well, well, given the rise in animated movies starring anthropomorphic characters (or in the case of Puffin Rock and the New Friends, talking feral animals), it is great to see some really good animated movies featuring animals definitely worth checking out.
Speaking of, we got one other animal-based animated movie to look forward to, so tune in next time where we will finally set sail for the fourth movie of a beloved DreamWorks franchise starring a panda that knows Kung-fu. Until next time, see you on the next adventure!
