Flushed Away

DreamWorks Animation (who gave us the Shrek films) and Aardman Animations (the creators Wallace & Gromit) are perhaps two of the most successful giants pioneering the animation field today—superseded only by Disney PIXAR. Flushed Away marks their first collaboration and hopefully it won’t be their last. The story revolves around a rat named Roddy (voiced by Hugh Jackman), who lives the upscale life of being a pet to a wealthy London family. With no one else to talk to, he amuses himself by watching TV and making imaginary friends out of the various toys scattered about the house. A series of circumstances leads Roddy to being flushed down the toilet and sent through the watery pipes of London underground sewer where he finds, to his amazement, a bustling metropolis of rats, frogs and slugs living beneath the city streets. As an outsider, Roddy finds things a bit too chaotic for his taste; however, before he can find his way home he stumbles upon a rat named Rita (Kate Winslet). The two unwittingly become ensnared in a nefarious plot by a villainous toad (Ian McKellan) set upon destroying the rat city. The film is inventive enough, and certainly has its charms, but it is not quite as witty as either Shrek or Wallace & Gromit. Whereas those films appealed in many ways to adults as much as they did to children, Flushed Away seems to be geared more for the kids. It has a strong message about the importance of family, which parents will appreciate, and the combined efforts of DreamWorks and Aardmen produce a style of animation that is truly gorgeous to behold.

Directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell.
Written by Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais, Christopher Lord, Joe Keenan and Will Davies.
Starring Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Ian McKellan, Jean Reno, Bill Nighy and Andy Serkis.

Rated PG for crude humor and some language. 90 min.

***½ so says The Fish