A quintessentially British classic, brought back for a new generation.
It's a pleasure to watch a new children's movie without dead parents or body fluid slapstick. The film is surprisingly close to the book, with saturated colours director Talalay seems to have been denied with her TV work.
Most of the casting is superb; standouts are Mark Gatiss as Ratty, Bob Hoskins as growly Badger and Oscar-nominee Imelda Staunton as the Barge Lady, with some surprisingly attractive Romanian weasels and underrated Canadian Mary Walsh as the unattractive bosom-rearranging washerwoman. Little Britain's Matt Lucas is a scenery-chewing disappointment as Toad, driving down the stars from 8 to 7; whenever he's on screen, despite his good music-hall turns with the songs, he jars us back to the 21st century.
Like most great stories, 'Willows' survives beyond its period-piece setting with a moral for young and old. Whether you subscribe to the id/ego/superego trio, or the class structure of the stupid rich Toad, proper Rat and afraid-but-brave homebody Mole, there's more to the tale than Toad's latest toy.
Children younger than 6 likely won't stand more than a few minutes of this, but nostalgic adults will enjoy watching this with school-age children who hopefully will ask for the whole story.
