Creature Comforts Review:

The Film

Aardman Animation were originally recognised for their amazing short sequence of the same name, which first saw light of day way back in 1989. You know, the one with the outspoken family of Polar Bears and the Jaguar who “likes to have the space”
It also won the Oscar for “Best Animated Short" in 1990, setting an early high standard for the studio.
The plasticine loving posse, helmed by Nick Park, also went on to make the classic Wallace and Gromit series, as well as the altogether more ‘Hollywood’ production, “Chicken Run” (starring the vocal stylings of one Mr Mel Gibson!).

The disc contains six ten – minute episodes – that’s right, a full hour of squidgy - faced fun.
Presented in stereo, the sound quality is clear and crisp without being over-bearing. It’s not necessary to have booming effects with such a gentle soundtrack.

Naturally the animation is all in the original wide – mouthed style, and proudly features the voices of the “Great British Public” as they discuss the circus, cuisine and gardening. However, the context of their comments is altered somewhat by the fact they are transformed variously into slugs, hamsters, horses and felines.

This DVD conveniently hits the shelves just in time for the Christmas rush. If you have ever seen or been a fan of the original short (which generally gets a terrestrial airing around the seasonal period), then you will know that this is a mixture of families and individuals discussing everyday topics. The quality of this type of animation, as well as the fact it is soooo cute, adds something very special to the mix.

One of the best things about these shorts is the way the animators seem to find perfect character matches for the voices. It’s quite a skill to be able to make a viewer believe they are really watching a guide dog earnestly discussing the virtues of their career choice, or a charming circus seal tell of their love of performing for the public. It’s also the fact that the topics fit so well with the creatures they eventually become, the attention to detail, which makes it work on this level where others might fail.
Everyone will have their own favourites - there’s plenty here for the cat and dog lovers, but some of the more unusual characters get the biggest laughs, like Gary and Nigel the snails. Gary, you see, “don’t much like Turkish Delight”.

The repeat viewing factor is upped by the fact that there is so much more going on in most scenes than just the main topic. It’s fun to background watch, and to find sneaky laughs after a second look.

It also has to be emphasised how exhausting this must have been to make, as every lip – synch is perfect, and the human gestures these characters make – the flippant wave of the hand, the eye rolls, finger tapping – it all fits beautifully, and you don’t really appreciate how painstaking it must be whilst you’re watching it.

It’s afterwards, and when you watch the extras, that you get an insight into the time and effort it takes to create this little world, and those involved must be very patient and real sticklers for detail. We’ve become accustomed to taking these things for granted in the constant wave of CGI these days, and it’s satisfying to see that the more traditional methods of animation still stand up proudly against the ‘big boys’ like Pixar.

Hooray for this little group of sticklers!

Extras

Behind the Scenes Featurette “Creating Creature Comforts” (23 minutes)
Contrary to popular opinion, spread by a comedy programme called “The Fast Show”, this is NOT a dull glimpse into the slow and mundane work of stop motion animation.

In a spoof sketch, they showed us an animator, moving everything “just a tiny amount, tiny amount” until we, the viewing pubic were exasperated. Oh, no.

But, ah, wait! This is a surprisingly interesting glimpse into the world of an animator – sans boring bits. Nick Park and co take us around the different sets, and shows us how they go about choosing the voices and editing sounds and pictures into a cohesive whole.

It’ll easily sustain the interest of adults and older kids, but you’ll inevitably face a barrage of awkward questions from little tots when they see their favourite characters being prodded and unwrapped from cling-film. Yikes.

All in all though, a nice companion piece which offers just enough information without too much technical geekery.

Bringing Creature Comforts To Life (4 Minutes)
Moving Photo Gallery
Original Drawings
Only short, but really interesting. When the vox pops have been chosen, and the characters are ready for action, the animators step into the breach and mimic the voices, complete with expression and gestures, to provide a basis on which to create the movements. Far more interesting than it first sounds, we see a clip of an animator creating a scene, alongside the resulting creature sequence. Suitably short and sweet, and it’s lovely to see the characters evolve from a series of scribbles.

Original Oscar Winning Creature Comforts (1989) (5 minutes)
It’s worth having this in your collection purely for the original alone! At the time of release this was viewed as pretty revolutionary, and it hasn’t lost any of its charm with the passage of time. Luckily, this is the full - length piece, rather than just the ‘Heat Electric’ advert, so you get to see all the old favourites, like Frank the Tortoise (who also pops up in the new episodes). You’ll want to watch this again and again.

Games
Nothing too special, simple games for wild eyed kids, to keep them distracted for five minutes on Christmas day - containing some fun trivia about the characters.

Trailer for DVD
Never really understood why it is necessary to have a trailer for something you will have already purchased, but hey, watch it before the series to get you in the mood.

Trailer for Wallace and Gromit Game – Project Zoo
Available on most consoles and the PC, Aardman take the opportunity to plug the “Project Zoo” game, which looks quite cute ‘n’ fun, but it probably isn’t going to attract fans of Socom or Quake.

DVD Rom Goodies
“Say That Again” - 4 sound-bites for your PC. Yes, you too can install your favourite catchphrases onto the desktop.

“Pets Posters” – 3 original pieces of artwork. These are great – screensavers/wallpaper direct from the local Aardman vet’s surgery. Ads for Plastic Surgery for Pets, and “Colonic Irrigation” for snakes. Smashing, Gromit!

Overall

A well – crafted dvd, which will be appreciated by adults as much as kids.

Yes, it’s being released in the run up to Christmas, the seasonal ‘ching ching’ time, but it’s not a cynical cash in, this is a lovingly put together collection for fans of the original work and those new to the characters. The sketches are wonderful and presented in digestible bite size pieces so you can dip in and out or indulge in the whole lot at once, and the addition of the original short is a great bonus.

The other extras are handy for the curious, and the dvd menu with the itty bitty television showing snippets is really original! There are plenty of un-highlighted buttons on display, which may or may not be Easter Eggs?

There’s plenty to explore on this feel-good package, and although it’s more of a gift than something you would buy yourself, you’d pleased to receive it, so start the hint – dropping now!

Series: 9/10
Extras: 7/10

Terresa Gaffney

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