Review: Free Birds / Cert: U / Director: Jimmy Hayward / Screenplay: Various / Starring: Owen Wilson, Woody Harrelson, George Takei / Release Date: Out Now
As the holidays creep up on us, so does the holiday movie season. Like the summer blockbuster season, the holidays provide the opportunity for many films to either attract or repel millions of viewers. Unfortunately, this year’s Thanksgiving-themed animated flick, Free Birds, accomplishes the latter. Soulless and dull, Free Birds is bland Thanksgiving fare that will fly out of viewers’ memories the instant the credits roll.
Reggie, a down on his luck, oddly coloured turkey, has been ostracised his entire life. He longs for someone to accept him, a wish that comes true when the President of the United States somehow ends up on his farm and grants him the honour of being the “pardon turkey”. Soon after, he meets the strange, dramatic turkey Jake, who informs Reggie of his plan to travel back in time to the first Thanksgiving and save turkeys from the tradition. Can Reggie and Jake save turkeykind, or will turkey be forever on the menu?
Owen Wilson leads a largely uninspired cast that includes Woody Harrelson, Amy Poehler, and George Takei, all of whom deliver half-hearted performances that border on reluctance. With such great talent squandered, it’s next to impossible to connect with or even like any of the characters.
The film’s concept is inventive and had potential to be hilariously ridiculous, but the execution disappoints and may induce yawning. As the film heads toward an underwhelming and incredibly stupid conclusion, the characters still suck and the emotion is still absent. The film functions as a quick holiday cash grab, and the final product suffers greatly because of that.
After seeing this abysmal, lazy piece of cinema, we’ve never been happier to say, “Pass the turkey.”
Expected Rating: 6 out of 10
Actual Rating:
