Early Man (2018)

SCORE: 2.5/5

Director: Nick Park

Released: January 20, 2018 (US Theatrical Release)

Date watched: July 9, 2018 – Home Video

It pains me to give Nick Park a lower score, but Early Man is not nearly as refined as his most iconic work, and unfortunately for American audiences the humor seems to be more lost in translation than many UK imported comedies.

While the stop motion animation remains beautifully done, what is lacking is an imaginative story. The one told in Early Man is simple, the richness or engagement found in many children’s animation films is no where to be found; it perhaps feels like missed opportunity as the ancient civilization setting seems like it could have had endless potential.

Early Man follows Dug, a caveman who belongs to a tribe of happy, well-meaning idiots. Their idle lives are disrupted when they’re pushed out by a new aggressive tribe of advanced bronze aged humans. Eventually, Dug finds himself challenging this sophisticated tribe to their heavily worshiped game of football (soccer) – turns out Early Man is a pun on early Manchester and this is a sports film…I think this may be where we lost many American viewers.

Dug must train his tribe of idiots to play soccer, he enlists the help of Goona, who as a woman isn’t allowed to play despite her skills and talents. This brings to the film to it’s anti-sexism tones which are nice, but mostly displayed with little effort or impact.

Early Man has all the visuals and potential for the classic claymation films we have grown to expect from Nick Park, but it never captures the charming lighthearted family fun seen in his earlier films. Children will still be entertained, but the adults will likely find little substance or enrichment.