The latest project from Aardman – the studio behind Wallace And Gromit and Chicken Run – has picked up acclaim from most reviewers.
It’s even been dubbed a “Brexit movie” as it gives the stop-motion geniuses another likely hit.
In a four-star review, The Guardian said: “This is a story concerned with Britain’s sense of history and identity. By accident or design, Aardman have made a Brexit movie!”
They added: “Early Man does little to move things on, in evolutionary terms, but – for younger viewers especially – its straightforward storytelling and gentle humour still work a treat.”
Also giving four stars, The Telegraph said: “No frame is wasted, and every scene is crammed with so much casual comic detail, repeat viewings are more or less required.”
The Independent gave three stars, reasoning: “Early Man’s heart is in the familiar, in the irresistible British charm that made Wallace and Gromit a household favourite, in the warm comfort of that which is handmade; things that never fail to feel more personal and beloved in their creation, that seem to take pleasure in small things.”
Radio Times gave four stars, saying: “Early Man finds a place somewhere at the top of Aardman’s evolutionary tree with Chicken Run and Shaun the Sheep.
“Although its conclusion is reliably preordained, that merely slots it into the back of the net alongside any other sports movie.”
The Wrap were more critical, saying Early Man gives the studio a rare dud.
“Overall the movie collapses in a heap of familiarity and lackadaisicalness. Park is an animation legend, but even the greats occasionally whiff it,” they said.
Early Man is out on January 26 in the UK.