I’M not normally a fan of films where animation and live action collide. For me, they often don’t work, give me one or the other.
So when I realised Hop was exactly that – a bunch of animated rabbits with some real on-screen actors – I didn’t have high hopes. I went along for the ride because my kids really wanted to see this film. So I’ll kick off the review by admitting I was pleasantly surprised.
Hop tells the story of the Easter Bunny. Deep on Easter Island, in a series of underground burrows, is where children’s dreams come true.
The baton of the king of all things Easter has been passed down from generation to generation since time immemorial. Except EB doesn’t want the job. He wants, as does any self respecting rabbit, to be a drummer.
So he does a runner. Or hops it for those wanting some rabbit-based puns. And heads to Hollywood, where he ends up meeting long-term drop-out Fred O’Hare (James Marsden).
The opening scenes of the film were almost Jurassic Park-esque, eventually honing in on the island and its famous statues, before the cameras disappeared deep underground to an incredible chocolate factory – and from the first minute the kids were absolutely hooked.
Now Fred needs a job to get his parents off his back. His father Henry (Gary Cole) chucks him out, and his sister throws him a lifeline, but the last thing he needs is a wild-child rabbit getting in the way and ruining his chances.
But of course the rabbit, EB, is the star of the show, the character who is going to make or break a film like this. And he makes it. A piece of inspired voice-over acting turns a character who was in danger of being a tired, cliched seen-it-before type of character into a novel, different rabbit with some serious attitude.
The voice behind the inspiration? Russell Brand. Love him or hate him, Russell Brand is a character, and wacky personality, and his – dare I use the word? – kookiness, comes across in the character he is voicing brilliantly.
It allows for a great relationship between EB and Fred, and allows a rather bizarre plot – which on the face of it could have been dreadful – to work extremely well.
Okay, so there’s moments when you’ll watch it and think ‘this is ridiculous’. It is, it’s a drum-playing rabbit from the Pacific who ends up auditioning for David Hasselhoff. It doesn’t get more ridiculous than that.... but kids will love this. It fuels their imagination, it’s an action-packed hour and half, and it sets them up nicely for the Easter holidays...
RATING: 4/5
Tickets: Cineworld, Shrewsbury