Free bird release date8/10/2023 ![]() ![]() ![]() What is here is a fair amount of name-calling, bullying, violence, and foul behavior from both man and fowl. As Reggie is fond of pointing out, "There's no such thing as The Great Turkey," and nothing resembling moral values, either. And don't get me started on "The Great Turkey" who is anything but holy. When the ending finally comes it's just dumb, and an egregious example of product placement, to boot. There's also a political overtone with the turkeys' dilemma a metaphor for the plight of Native Americans. The whole story is colored with the feeling of impending doom, and death actually occurs more than once. Despite the bad puns we expect from a kid's movie and a fainthearted attempt to make this a second-chance story, Free Birds is just depressing. There's some attempt to lighten things up with a romance between Reggie and a sprightly young turkey named Jenny ( Amy Poehler, Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked) but it never really gets off the ground. Speaking of Governor Bradford ( Dan Fogler, Mars Needs Moms), if he and Miles Standish ( Colm Meaney, Get Him to the Greek) were still around, they would probably have grounds for a defamation of character lawsuit. A pilgrim actually dies in what is apparently meant to be a humorous exclamation point to the governor's comments. Maybe I'm too sensitive but I don't think the suffering and starvation of early settlers is something to laugh about. Both Pilgrim fathers and modern citizens are shown as stupid, self-centered villains. Mind you, considering the way people are portrayed in this movie, you can see their point. In their efforts to save turkeykind the birds determine to use whatever means necessary, even if it means bumping off humans in the process. Eventually, of course, they come on board and all the birds flock together to save each other from the dinner table.Īll this seems harmless enough, but it's the tone of the film that rankles. Smart, organized, and able to slip through the trees like Robin Hood and his merry men, this flock isn't interested in a couple of crackpots from the future. Jake drags Reggie along to a secret government hideout where they take flight in a time machine with a perky personality ( George Takei) and land in olde Plymouth, ready to lead their forebirds to culinary freedom.Īt this point our heroes find that while modern turkeys may have had the brains bred out of them, their Early American counterparts are a different breed. This mission comes in the form of Jake ( Woody Harrelson, Now You See Me), a large not-too-bright turkey on a mission from God (or, in his case, "The Great Turkey"). Alas, for Reggie, the good life is all too brief, as he's unwillingly thrust into a mission to go back in time to the first Thanksgiving and "get turkeys off the menu for good." The highlight of the film is watching Reggie settle into his life as a "flock of one" complete with telenovellas, delivery pizza, and fuzzy slippers. When Reggie's life is spared he goes from bullied outcast to pampered pet. Try as he might he can't get his fellow birds to heed his Chicken Little-like warning that the farmer is only fattening them up in order to eat them. Reggie ( Owen Wilson, The Internship) is an adorable ugly duckling of a turkey. It's a shame the story is so lame, because the animation is so darn cute. Instead, I got a mean-spirited tale that left a bad aftertaste. I was expecting Chicken Run with a Thanksgiving twist. Considering the havoc it wreaks on history, that's a comfort. ![]() Just in case you were wondering if this was a fact-based documentary, the animated holiday feature Free Birds opens with a disclaimer assuring the audience that it is a work of fiction. Rating: Rated PG for some action/peril and rude humorĬast: Woody Harrelson, Owen Wilson, Amy Poehler, George Takei, Colm Meaney, Keith David, Dan Fogler Theatrical Release Date: November 1, 2013 ![]()
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