Disney's Big Little Picture
Chicken Meets the Egg-liens (in 3-D!)

Disney's first full-length computer animated movie is pulling out all the stops. Not only does Chicken Little update a classic story, but it also incorporates some funny gags, good music, and great voice talent. It's even in 3-D, for those lucky enough to live near a participating theater. The FilmGuru -- always willing to go that extra mile -- recently made the trek to nearby Lee's Summit, Missouri, in order to see the film with that extra dimension.

Chicken Little
Chicken Little (Zach Braff) is looking for a sign that the sky is falling. (Disney, 2005)

Directed by: Mark Dindal
Written by: Steve Bencich and Ron Friedman
Starring: Zach Braff, Garry Marshall, Steve Zahn,
Joan Cusack

Rated R
Running time: 81 min.

FilmGuru's Rating : 8 out of 10.

The story of this film picks up where the classic tale of Chicken Little left off. Chicken Little (Zach Braff) is ringing the town bell, warning everyone that the sky is falling. The whole town is in a panic until his dad, Buck (Garry Marshall), finds an acorn on the ground and surmises that this was the cause for his son's misunderstanding. The incident becomes a watershed moment in Little's life and a year later he's still known as the crazy chicken who thought the sky was falling. Picked on at school, Little finds solidarity among the other outcasts in his class including Abby "Ugly Duckling" Mallard (Joan Cusack), Runt of the Litter (Steve Zahn), and Fish Out of Water (Dan Molina).

Like so many Disney films, this is the story of a broken family -- in this case a single dad and his son. Little has never come to grips with his father's embarrassment, and he wants nothing more than to earn his father's respect. While Abby plays therapist and tries to reconcile the father and son through communication, Chicken Little makes up his mind that he needs to win his dad's respect by becoming a baseball hero. The baseball storyline is a bit contrived and predictable, but the end result is a good one. Although Buck is proud of his son, he still doesn't believe the "sky is falling" nonsense.

The story makes an unexpected turn into science fiction when the piece of the "sky" that fell a year ago bonks Chicken Little again -- this time as he gazes out his bedroom window. The sky is actually a camouflaged piece of hull from a passing spaceship. When Little calls his friends to investigate, they mistakenly believe that the aliens have come to destroy Earth, setting off a new wave of hysteria for the town at the expense of Chicken Little's reputation. Ironically, Little and his friends have unknowingly let loose a fuzzy, three-eyed creature from the ship and the result is the much-feared intergalactic invasion.

Chicken Little spices up the storyline with visual gags and some silly, immature humor that defines the target audience of this film. I'm not above a good burp or pee-pee joke, but the folks at Disney seem to be pandering to the diaper set with much of the humor. The key to making a good children's film is to avoiding talking down to the kids. They will either get the jokes or they won't, but leave something for the adults as well. There is a lot of egg-related humor for viewers with a quick eye. Even the aliens look like giant eggs with tentacles, making me wonder if the egg jokes had gone too far.

Many of the jokes in the film rely on music, including an extended song-and-dance number at the end in which the cast joins in singing "Don't Go Breakin' My Heart." Early in the film, the audience is treated to a montage set to "One Little Slip" by the Barenaked Ladies. The song helps set the tone of the film while allowing the comedy to continue. The result was a cute departure from the normal Disney musical formula.

The 3-D aspect of the film was worth the detour to see it in another city. The animators utilize the 3-D technology to make the film have depth rather than relying on cheap gimmicks (such as things popping out at the audience). The scene at night on the baseball field with the spaceship is especially breathtaking as hundreds of leaves swirl around in a realistic windstorm. I thought I saw leaves flying off the sides of the screen while my wife swore that one brushed her cheek.

The film ends with a humorous commentary about Hollywood and its need to "spice up" a true story. For me, this was one of the funniest moments in the film as Adam West voiced "Ace" Little, leading his crew in repelling the approaching alien armada. Can it get any better than that?