Amazon.co.uk Review
Flushed Away is a rip-roaring nautical adventure with a twist: The heroes are a pair of rodents braving the sewers underneath London. Roddy (voiced by Hugh Jackman) is an upper-crust house-mouse who finds himself flushed into the subterranean sewers. Eager to return to his posh home, he enlists the help of a boat-captain rat named Rita (Kate Winslet), who has troubles of her own; namely the kingpin of the underworld, the Toad (Ian McKellen), and his henchmen including the French mercenary Le Frog (Jean Reno).
While technically Flushed Away could be considered part of the wave of celebrity-voiced, anthropomorphic-animal movies that hit in 2005-2006 (Madagascar, Over the Hedge, The Wild, etc.), it doesn't inspire the same sense of déjà vu. For one thing, its voice actors are less recognizable than the likes of Bruce Willis and Chris Rock. For another, its look is very distinctive. Like Nick Park's Chicken Run and Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit, it's a joint production of DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Features, and although Park isn't involved, it retains his trademark blocky look of clay animation. But animating the movie by computer rather than by hand allows for some eye-popping tableaux, such as floodwaters rushing through the sewers and an entire town of little animated characters. It's a crazy thrill ride loaded with inside jokes and enough crude humour to earn a PG rating, and the band of singing slugs is also a hoot. --David Horiuchi
Synopsis
This computer-animated feature, directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell, explores a whole new world under London. A pet mouse named Roddy St. James (voiced by Hugh Jackman) is pretty much spoiled rotten. His owners live in a chic Kensington apartment, and Roddy has everything he could possibly want--except friends and a family. Everything changes for Roddy when his owners go away for a few days and their flat is invaded by a common rat, Sid (Shane Richie). Determined to reclaim his apartment and boot out the intruder, Roddy tries to talk Sid into enjoying the apartment "Jacuzzi," which is actually the toilet. But Sid is smarter than he looks, and soon Roddy is traveling down the pipes out of his sheltered life into a world that he never knew existed.
Emerged in Ratropolis and completely out of his element, Roddy is immediately caught up in an adventure. He meets Rita (Kate Winslet), a street-smart scavenger who travels the sewers by boat looking for riches that will help her care for her parents and multitude of siblings, and hires her to help him get above ground. But the villainous Toad (Ian McKellen) and his rodent henchmen, Spike (Andy Serkis) and Whitey (Bill Nighy), are constant problems. To make matters worse, the Toad is preparing to hatch an evil plot that promises to wipe out all the rats and mice dwelling underground, and he brings in his mercenary Parisian cousin Le Frog (Jean Reno) and his team to help get the job done. This comedy/adventure features first-class animation from the team that created WALLACE & GROMIT: THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT and is voiced by an all-star cast.