Review of Chicken Little (1943) by Mario R — 05 Oct 2009

Wow. So much hate. Chicken Little must hands down be the single most underrated Disney movie in existence. Given the scores and the complaints about the story and animation, you would think that people were describing something on the level of Pokemon or Care Bears, and it's just not so! I've seen people give this movie lower scores than some of the most terrible movies ever made, and I find it baffling that this movie is barely pushing 30% at RT while the "no joke, no nothing" dud Dinosaur is earning a fresh rating.

I find it amusing that, despite the critical bashing, Chicken Little still raked in enough money to turn around a slump that Disney had been suffering since the year 2000, while Chicken Little's closest competitor, Valiant, released by Disney but not FROM Disney, suffered a loss. Ignore for just a little bit the Disney label. Chicken Little has Mark Dindal's fingerprints all over it. Mark Dindal, if you may recall, is the genius behind the similarly underrated movies The Emperor's New Groove and Cats Don't Dance. As a Mark Dindal movie, Chicken Little is fast, loose, and funny.

I'd like to take a moment to address the issues with the animation. The animation is actually pretty good and serves the cartoon nature well. Why the hate? Well instead of super detailed computer graphics, which would've done it a disservice, Mark Dindal wisely chose to use a squash and stretch approach to give the characters the appeal of the old 2D cartoons.

Chicken Little is a movie that is bursting at the seams with cute, lovable characters. Yes, it's a breezy movie. No, there is no drama. No, it can't match up to the best of Pixar, but I did enjoy this movie more than Cars, A Bug's Life, or Monsters, Inc. At the heart of the story, amidst the songs and the pop culture jokes, is a lesson about proper parental bonding and listening to your kids. It's the same theme seen in Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, but I had more fun watching this theme in Chicken Little than in that movie. Chicken Little also has the pretty true-to-life trio of teen awkwardness, teen bullying, and teen romance. Abby Mallard is a personal favorite of mine, and she tries to be a voice of reason to Chicken Little. There's also a small romantic element going on between her and Chicken Little. It's tiny enough not to appear stupid but big enough to be cute.

Chicken Little does use a few pop culture jokes, but not as much as Disney used to do. Instead, the movie relies mostly on the charms of the characters and some genuinely witty banter. Chicken Little's dad is so Jewish in his demeanor, but it's not insulting, and he's often funny. There are also many amusing situations involving high school life and animal mannerisms. The dodgeball sequence is the highlight of the movie and terrifically funny, but the karaoke scene is also a sweet diversion. Runt can't resist an opportunity to inject a line from a cheesy song into the current situation at hand. There are also a couple radio tunes in this movie, but Disney chose some good artists this time. Unlike previous movies with snoozers like Phil Collins and Elton John, who are good artists but can only work with what you give them, this movie has a highlight in the form of a song from Bare Naked Ladies.

The movie also never uses Chicken Little's small stature as an overwrought element, unlike Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, which buries whatever emotional theme is there underneath Flint's embarrassing geekiness. Chicken Little is actually a pretty brainy fellow and quite resourceful but is still emotional fragile and uncertain of himself.

To sum it up, this is a fantastic and underrated movie. Is it for everyone? No. But it's still a fun time for the kids and fun stuff for the right person who can identify with the movie's plucky and adorable stars.