The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists! review

by Luke Jones

It’s an opinion that some may question, but I’m going to go ahead and say it: Aardman Animations is the finest film production studio working in the UK today. Acting as Britain’s answer to the geniuses at Pixar, Aardman has in the past been responsible for Chicken Run, Shaun the Sheep, Morph and, of course, all things Wallace & Gromit. The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists is just as barmily brilliant as its title suggests, and another fine addition to the Aardman stable.

Based on a series of books by Gideon Defoe, Pirates! sees an eclectic band of would-be Jack Sparrows led by the lavishly bearded Pirate Captain (Hugh Grant), who is determined to be crowned Pirate of the Year. However, like so many English comedy heroes, the Pirate Captain is hamstrung by the fact that he isn’t actually very good at his job: attempts to plunder and pillage often result in failure, most memorably on a visit to a ‘plague’ ship (changed from a leper ship at the last minute to avoid offence). Yet a chance encounter with Charles Darwin (David Tennant) reveals a hitherto unknown fact about the ship’s parrot Polly that could potentially land the group with plenty of swag.

Amazingly it has been six years since the release of Aardman’s last plasticine animated feature, and the time has clearly been spent wisely. Easily the most technically complicated film the studio has attempted to date, Pirates! is a visual treat from start to finish. Filled with humorous background details, sweeping adventurous vistas and those all important thumbprints on the models, it is a remarkable piece of work that is sure to reward repeat views on DVD / Blu Ray.

Yet Pirates! is so much more than an exercise in showing what play-doh can do. Working like a family friendly Anchorman, the plot may simply exist to get the cast of characters from one extreme situation to another, but with characters this fun to be around that is no problem. The Pirate Captain inevitably gets most of the screen time, and is as bumbling and eccentric as you would expect a character played by Hugh Grant to be. The supporting pirates are the real stars however, with names such as ‘the surprisingly curvaceous pirate’ and ‘the pirate who likes sunsets and kittens’ setting the tone for much of the humour.

The main problem with the film is that there is simply too much content for an hour and a half long movie. So while pirate rivals such as Cutthroat Liz (Salma Hayek) and Peg Leg Hastings (Lenny Henry) make arresting impressions they have little to do beyond their introductions. This is also the first of their plasticine films to be done in 3D, which should be avoided in favour of the clearer, brighter 2D version.

So what we have is an Aardman plasticine feature where its main problem is that it doesn’t last long enough. In short, GO AND SEE IT NOW!