A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon explained

A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Producer:Paul Kewley
Story:Richard Starzak
Music:Tom Howe
Cinematography:Charles Copping
Editing:Sim Evan-Jones
Studio:StudioCanal
Aardman Animations
Anton Capital Entertainment
Distributor:StudioCanal
Runtime:87 minutes
Budget:$25 million
Gross:$47.8 million[1] [2]

A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon is a 2019 animated science fiction comedy film produced by Aardman Animations. The film is directed by Richard Phelan and Will Becher (in their feature directorial debuts) and written by Mark Burton and Jon Brown, based on an idea by Richard Starzak. It is a stand-alone sequel to Shaun the Sheep Movie (2015) and is based on the claymation television series Shaun the Sheep, a spin-off from the Wallace and Gromit short film A Close Shave. It is the first sequel ever made by Aardman and in stop-motion in general. The film stars Justin Fletcher, John Sparkes, Kate Harbour, and Rich Webber reprising their voice roles from the series and the previous film, whilst new cast members include Amalia Vitale, David Holt and Chris Morrell. In the film, Shaun and the flock encounter an alien with extraordinary powers who crash-lands near Mossy Bottom Farm. They have to find a way to return her home in order to prevent her falling into the hands of the Ministry for Alien Detection.[3]

Plans for a sequel began in 2015, following the release of the first film. The film officially began production following the end of production of Early Man (2018). Richard Starzak was announced to return as director, however, in November 2018, the film was later announced to be directed by Becher and Phelan.

A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon was released in cinemas on 18 October 2019 in the United Kingdom, and on Netflix in the United States on 14 February 2020. The film received positive reviews from critics who praised its animation, characters and humour and grossed $43.1 million against a $25 million budget. It was nominated at the British Academy Film Awards for Best Animated Film and at the Academy Awards for Best Animated Feature.[4]

Plot

In the town of Mossingham a man named John and his Border Collie Bingo discover the landing of a UFO. On nearby Mossy Bottom Farm, Shaun and the flock attempt to pass time with several dangerous activities, only for sheepdog Bitzer to stop them. After being banned from having a barbecue for dinner, Shaun decides to order three pizzas, but when the pizzas arrive, the flock discover that the boxes are completely empty.

The next morning, Shaun discovers a trail of pizza crusts and encounters the visitor. The visitor introduces herself as Lu-La, an tentacled dog-like alien from the planet To-Pa who can mimic sounds and levitate objects. When Shaun introduces her to the flock, she causes mischief with a combine harvester, damaging it while transforming a field behind the farm house into unintentional crop circles. Taking advantage of the recent news of alien sightings, the Farmer decides to create an alien-based theme park, "Farmageddon", in which he can earn money to afford a new harvester.

The Ministry of Alien Detection's (M.A.D.) leader, Agent Red, who has been obsessed with proving the existence of aliens since seeing two of them as a child, investigates the UFO claims. Meanwhile, Lu-La and Shaun track down the UFO, followed by Bitzer, who spots them while posting flyers for "Farmageddon" in an alien costume. On board the UFO, Lu-La transmits her memories to Shaun, revealing that she is actually a child and accidentally launched her parents' UFO while playing on it. They realise they need an egg-shaped device that was dropped by Lu-La when leaving the UFO, to activate it. M.A.D. mistakes Bitzer for an alien and follows him to the UFO, capturing it with Shaun, Lu-La, and Bitzer still on board. They also find the device and take both it and the UFO back to their secret base.

At the base, Shaun and Lu-La slip out and manage to retrieve the device, successfully restarting the ship and escaping the base. They set a course for To-Pa; en route, Shaun ignores Bitzer's instructions not to press the ship's buttons and causes it to crash-land back at the farm. With the UFO destroyed, Lu-La is left heartbroken. Feeling guilty, Shaun discovers that the device can be used to send a distress signal if he reaches a high enough point. Shaun suggests that he and Lu-La attempt to reach the top of the Farmer's "Farmageddon" theme park tower to make contact.

With the help of the flock and Bitzer, Shaun and Lu-La climb the tower while the Farmer launches a show at the theme park. Meanwhile, Red arrives and chases Shaun and Lu-La up the tower with a mecha. Shaun manages to knock Red off the tower and successfully sends a distress signal to To-Pa. Lu-La's parents, Ub-Do and Me-Ma, quickly arrive and reunite with their daughter. Red eventually welcomes the aliens, recognizing them as the aliens she saw as a child. Shaun, Bitzer and the flock bid the aliens farewell, while the "Farmageddon" theme park and show receive rave reviews as the entire incident is regarded as part of the show's special effects. On their way back to To-Pa, the aliens discover the Farmer has accidentally boarded their UFO, prompting them to take him back to Earth.

In a mid-credits scene, Shaun, Bitzer, and the flock play with a frisbee, while the Farmer tries out his new harvester; the frisbee gets caught in the harvester's machinery and causes it to explode.

In a post-credits scene, one of the hazmats enters a black room with a piano. He then removes his suit and reveals himself to be Brian Cox. He plays a failed attempt of "Things Can Only Get Better" on the piano after being interrupted by Timmy, who unplugs the piano and tells him to be quiet.

Cast

Production

On 14 September 2015, StudioCanal announced it was working with Aardman on a sequel to Shaun the Sheep Movie.[6] On 25 October 2016, under the working title, Shaun the Sheep Movie 2, Aardman confirmed a sequel would go into pre-production in January 2017 with Richard Starzak, co-director of the first film, returning[7] as well financial support by Creative Europe MEDIA.

In November 2018, it was announced that Aardman employees Richard Phelan and Will Becher would be co-directing the film, with Starzak still attached as director, due to Peter Lord and David Sproxton giving majority ownership of the company to employees to keep it independent. However, Phelan and Becher ended up being the directors of the final cut, while Starzak received both an executive producer and story by credit. Production began in November 2017 and ended in June 2019.

Music

The music for the film is composed by Tom Howe. It was initially believed Ilan Eshkeri, who composed the music for Shaun the Sheep Movie, would return, but these rumours were false.

The theme tune for the film is titled "Lazy" and is written by Justin Hayward-Young, Yoann Intonti, Timothy Lanham, Freddie Cowan, Arni Hjorvar Arnason and Cole Marsden Greif-Neill and performed by The Vaccines and Kylie Minogue. Furthermore, like the previous film, the film incorporates a remix of the series theme tune "Life's a Treat". Both Mark Thomas and Vic Reeves return to perform the remix and are joined by Nadia Rose.

Release

The film was first released in Germany on 26 September 2019 and in on 18 October 2019 in the United Kingdom.[8] It was intended to be theatrically released in the US on 13 December 2019 by Lionsgate, but due to the box office failure of Early Man, the film was acquired by Netflix, who released it digitally on 14 February 2020.[9]

Home media

In the United States, it was released on Blu-ray and DVD on 18 October 2022 by Shout! Factory.[10] In the United Kingdom, the film was released on Ultra HD Blu-ray and Blu-ray by StudioCanal.[11]

Marketing

In January 2018, it was announced that the teaser of the film would play theatrically in front of another Aardman film, Early Man, worldwide, revealing the film's new title and synopsis.[12] On 7 December 2018, Aardman announced through on social media that the teaser trailer for the film along with release dates would be arriving the following week. The teaser trailer was released online on 11 December 2018, followed by the first official trailer released on 1 April 2019.[13] On 3 July 2019 the second trailer was released.[14]

Reception

Box office

As of 29 December 2019, A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon has made $43.1 million against a $25 million budget,[15] with the top-grossing countries being the UK ($9.2 million), Germany ($6.7 million) and France ($5.4 million). It currently ranks as the 16th highest-grossing stop-motion animated film of all time.

Critical response

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes records positive reviews based on critics and an average rating of . The critical consensus reads, "A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon retains the charm of its small-screen source material while engagingly expanding the title character's world."[16] On Metacritic, the film has a score of 79 out of 100, based on 17 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[17]

Guy Lodge of Variety, who reviewed the previous film, gave the film a positive review, saying, "The great pleasure of these films' bright, largely wordless slapstick is that it plays universally whilst accommodating all manner of obsessive, idiosyncratic detailing at the edges."[18]

Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times who also reviewed the previous film, gave the film a positive review, saying "That all these characters and then some have distinct personalities is all the more remarkable because no one uses actual words, instead making do quite nicely with assorted grunts, groans and indefinable grumbles."[19]

Brian Tallerico of RogerEbert.com gave 3.5/4 stars to the movie, saying "If you like anything Aardman, or anything funny really, you should make an effort to find it."[20]

Carlos Aguilar of The Wrap gave the film a positive review, saying, "A quick-witted and uproarious homage to the sci-fi genre like only the stop-motion geniuses at Aardman Animations could imagine and handcraft."[21]

Awards and nominations

AwardDate of CeremonyCategoryNomineeResult
Academy Awards25 April 2021Best Animated FeatureRichard Phelan, Will Becher and Paul Kewley
Annie Awards[22] 16 April 2021Best Animated Feature – IndependentPaul Kewley
Writing in an Animated Feature ProductionMark Burton and Jon Brown
Editorial in an Animated Feature ProductionSim Evan-Jones and Adrian Rhodes
Austin Film Critics Association[23] 19 March 2021Best Animated FilmA Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Art Directors Guild Awards[24] 10 April 2021Excellence in Production Design for an Animated FilmMatt Perry, Matt Sanders and Richard Edmunds
British Academy Film Awards2 February 2020Best Animated FilmWill Becher, Richard Phelan and Paul Kewley
British Animation Awards12 March 2020Best Long FormWill Becher and Richard Phelan
British Independent Film Awards[25] 1 December 2019Best EffectsHoward Jones
Douglas Hickox AwardWill Becher and Richard Phelan
Cinema Audio Society[26] 17 April 2021Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for a Motion Picture – AnimatedDom Boucher, Chris Burdon, Gilbert Lake, Adrian Rhodes, Alan Meyerson and Ant Bayman
Chicago Film Critics Association[27] 21 December 2020Best Animated FilmA Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Critics' Choice Super Awards[28] 10 January 2021Best Animated Movie
2021 Gold Derby Awards[29] 16 April 2021Best Animated Film Will Becher, Richard Phelan and Paul Kewley
2020 Golden Tomato Awards[30] 11 March 2021Best Animated Movie 2020A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Hollywood Music in Media Awards[31] 27 January 2021Best Original Score in an Animated FilmTom Howe
Music + Sound Awards UK21 July 2020Best Original Composition in a Feature Film
National Film Awards UK1 July 2020Best Animated FilmWill Becher and Richard Phelan
London Critics Circle Film Awards30 January 2020Technical Achievement Award
Online Association of Female Film Critics[32] 1 March 2021Best Animated FilmA Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon
Satellite Awards19 December 2019Best Motion Picture – Animated or Mixed MediaWill Becher and Richard Phelan
World Soundtrack Awards[33] 24 October 2020Discovery of the YearTom Howe

Video game

To promote the release of the movie, an updated version of the previously released Home Sheep Home games entitled Home Sheep Home: Farmageddon Party Edition was released on Nintendo Switch and Steam in October 2019.[34] It was released in Japan in August 2020 by Greenlight Games. It was also released on PS4 and Xbox in 2023.[35] This version contains a party mode that offers several minigames to play against other players, all hosted by Lu-La.[36]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon . Shaun-the-Sheep-Movie-Farmageddon-(2019) . 31 May 2023.
  2. Web site: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon (2019) – International Box Office Results. Box Office Mojo. 12 November 2019. 8 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200608203457/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt6193408/?ref_=bo_se_r_1. live.
  3. Web site: 'A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon' First Trailer: Aardman's Beloved Flock Goes to Space. Erbland. Kate. 11 December 2018. IndieWire. en. 15 February 2019. 6 April 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190406060016/https://www.indiewire.com/2018/12/a-shaun-the-sheep-mov0ie-farmageddon-first-trailer-aardman-1202027112/. live.
  4. Web site: 2021. 2021-03-15. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. en. 15 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210315124455/https://oscars.org/oscars/ceremonies/2021. live.
  5. Web site: 17 September 2019 . Sister Reacts to My Performance! . 17 September 2019 . . 17 September 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190917171736/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnJzsmiVLsk&gl=US&hl=en . live .
  6. News: Hopewell. John. 'Legend,' 'Shaun,' Smash Benchmarks for Studiocanal. 15 September 2015. Variety. Variety Media, LLC. 14 September 2015. 15 September 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150915152410/http://variety.com/2015/film/news/legend-shaun-smash-benchmarks-as-studiocanal-universal-music-group-explore-synergies-exclusive-1201592926/. live.
  7. Web site: Tartaglione. Nancy. Aardman, Studiocanal Reunite Flock For 'Shaun The Sheep Movie 2' – AFM. Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media, LLC. 25 October 2016. 25 October 2016. 12 June 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180612163720/https://deadline.com/2016/10/shaun-the-sheep-movie-2-aardman-studiocanal-afm-1201842166/. live.
  8. Web site: Shaun the Sheep Movie: Release Dates. 25 October 2019. shaunthesheep.com. 25 October 2019. 25 October 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191025163105/https://shaunthesheep.com/release-dates. dead.
  9. Web site: Desowitz . Bill . 22 November 2019 . Netflix Adds Aardman's 'A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon' to Animation Slate – Exclusive . . 23 November 2019 . 23 November 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191123133808/https://www.indiewire.com/2019/11/netflix-aardman-a-shaun-the-sheep-farmageddon-to-animation-slate-exclusive-1202191017/ . live .
  10. Web site: A Shaun The Sheep Movie: Farmageddon – Blu-ray/DVD :: Shout! Factory . 2022-09-02 . shoutfactory.com . en . 2 September 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220902162235/https://www.shoutfactory.com/product/a-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon-blu-ray?product_id=7911 . live .
  11. Web site: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon 4K Blu-ray (4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray) (United Kingdom) . blu-ray.com . 7 February 2023 . 7 February 2023 . https://web.archive.org/web/20230207055725/https://www.blu-ray.com/movies/A-Shaun-the-Sheep-Movie-Farmageddon-4K-Blu-ray/255545/ . live .
  12. Web site: Volkov . Anton . 24 January 2018 . IN THE PIPELINE: First Teaser Trailer For Aardman's 'Shaun The Sheep 2' This Weekend . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20191128065726/https://trailer-track.com/2018/01/24/in-the-pipeline-first-teaser-trailer-for-aardmans-shaun-the-sheep-2-this-weekend/ . 28 November 2019 . 24 January 2018 . trailer-track.com.
  13. Web site: Shaun the Sheep Movie 2: Farmageddon – Official Trailer. 1 April 2019. YouTube. 1 April 2019. 26 August 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230826183320/https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&v=YxRUSAIYieA&feature=youtu.be. live.
  14. Web site: Shaun the Sheep Movie 2: Farmageddon – Official Trailer 2. 1 August 2019. YouTube. 1 August 2019. 26 November 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191126064223/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RecHCOkgOvI. live.
  15. Web site: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon (2019) – International Box Office Results – Box Office Mojo. 12 November 2019. 8 June 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200608203457/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt6193408/?ref_=bo_se_r_1. live.
  16. Web site: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon. Rotten Tomatoes. . 2 November 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20211102054908/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/a_shaun_the_sheep_movie_farmageddon. live.
  17. Web site: Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon Movie. Metacritic. 4 January 2020. 14 April 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200414204256/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/a-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon. live.
  18. Web site: Guy. Lodge. Film Review: 'A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon'. Variety. Variety Media, LLC. 26 April 2021. 17 October 2019. 26 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210426144923/https://variety.com/2019/film/reviews/a-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon-review-1203344259/. live.
  19. Web site: Review: Shaun the Sheep returns with 'Farmageddon' on its mind. Los Angeles Times. 26 April 2021. 14 February 2020. 26 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210426144923/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/movies/story/2020-02-13/review-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon. live.
  20. Web site: Guy. Lodge. Film Review: A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon. RogerEbert.com. RogerEbert. 26 April 2021. 14 February 2020. 26 April 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210426144924/https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/a-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon-movie-review-2020. live.
  21. Web site: Inkoo. Kang. 'A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon' Review: Aardman's Wooly Hero Returns for a Hilarious Close Encounter. TheWrap. 13 February 2020. 26 April 2021. 26 August 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230826183315/https://www.thewrap.com/a-shaun-the-sheep-movie-farmageddon-review-aardman-netflix/. live.
  22. Web site: 2021 Annie Award Nominations: 'Soul,' 'Wolfwalkers' and Netflix Lead . 3 March 2021 . Variety . 3 March 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210303161142/https://variety.com/2021/film/awards/netflix-soul-wolfwalkers-annie-award-nominations-1234920416/. 3 March 2021 . live .
  23. Web site: 2020 Austin Film Critics Association Award Nominations. Partridge. Jon. 12 March 2021. Deadline. 11 March 2021. 12 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210312170329/https://austinfilmcritics.org/2020-austin-film-critics-association-award-nominations-b7a391b56646. live.
  24. Web site: Art Directors Guild Awards Nominations: 'Mank', 'Tenet', 'Promising Young Woman' And 'The Flight Attendant' On List. Hipes. Patrick. 25 February 2021. Deadline. 25 February 2021. 25 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210225170844/https://deadline.com/2021/02/art-directors-guild-nominations-list-of-nominees-1234700881/. live.
  25. Web site: Yang . Rachel . 15 January 2020 . Winners & Nominations 2019 . 15 January 2020 . BIFA . 1 November 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20191101135038/https://www.bifa.film/awards/2019/winners-nominations/ . live .
  26. Web site: Hipes . Patrick . 2 March 2021 . Cinema Audio Society Nominations for the 57th Annual CAS Awards for Outstanding Achievement in Sound Mixing for 2020 . 2 March 2021 . Cinema Audio Society . 18 April 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210418202303/https://cinemaaudiosociety.org/cinema-audio-society-nominations-for-the-57th-annual-cas-awards-for-outstanding-achievement-in-sound-mixing-for-2020/ . live .
  27. Web site: Chloe Zhao's Nomadland Leads Chicago Film Critics Association 2020 Nominations. Adams. Ryan. 18 December 2020. Awards Daily. 18 December 2020. 24 December 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201224234309/https://www.awardsdaily.com/2020/12/18/chloe-zhaos-nomadland-leads-chicago-film-critics-association-2020-nominations/. live.
  28. Web site: Critics Choice Super Awards . Yang . Rachel . 19 November 2020 . Critic's Choice Association . 19 November 2020 . 25 November 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201125090125/https://www.criticschoice.com/critics-choice-super-awards/ . live .
  29. Web site: 2021 Gold Derby Film Awards nominations list: 'Mank' leads with 10, followed by 'Ma Rainey' and 'Minari' with 8, 'Nomadland,' 'Promising Young Woman,' 'Soul,' 'Tenet' with 6. GoldDerby. 10 March 2021. 10 March 2021. 10 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210310205302/https://www.goldderby.com/feature/gold-derby-film-awards-nominations-list-mank-minari-1204102142/. live.
  30. Web site: 11 March 2021 . Best-Reviewed Animated Movies 2020 . . 12 March 2021 . 15 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220515135553/https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/guide/best-animated-movies-2020/ . live .
  31. Web site: Hollywood Music in Media Awards Announces 2021 Nominees; Kenny Loggins Set for Lifetime Honor (EXCLUSIVE). Variety. 15 January 2021. 15 January 2021. 15 January 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210115215755/https://variety.com/2021/music/news/hollywood-music-media-awards-nominations-songs-score-1234886663/. live.
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  33. Web site: 'Star Wars', '1917' composers nominated for World Soundtrack Awards . Yang . Rachel . 17 September 2020 . BIFA . 17 September 2020 . 1 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201001132045/https://www.screendaily.com/news/star-wars-1917-composers-nominated-for-world-soundtrack-awards/5153102.article . live .
  34. Web site: Aardman Studios and Shaun the Sheep Present a New Home Sheep Home Adventure . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100253/https://homesheephomegame.com/ . 25 September 2019 . 25 September 2019 . homesheephomegame.com.
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  36. Web site: Home Sheep Home: Farmageddon Party Edition Coming Soon! . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20190925100224/https://shaunthesheep.com/news/home-sheep-home-farmageddon-party-edition-coming-soon . 25 September 2019 . 25 September 2019 . Shaun the Sheep official site.