Review
Have you ever sat through a children’s movie with a message? A very blunt message? That the movie beats you over the head with, over, and over? And over? That’s Walt Disney’s Chicken Little, unfortunately. It takes a good concept, and ruins it in the execution. It’s the final film of Don Knotts, and it’s a sad farewell to a great talent and very funny man.
Editorial Review of Walt Disney’s Chicken Little courtesy of Amazon.com
A classic fable gets fused with War of the Worlds in Disney’s Chicken Little. In the small town of Oakey Oaks, young Chicken Little (voiced by Zach Braff, Garden State) struggles to live down the embarrassment of having once thought the sky was falling. But when he gets struck again by a hexagonal, sky-camouflaged, hi-tech doohickey, he and his friends Ugly Duckling (Joan Cusack, School of Rock), Runt of the Litter (Steve Zahn, Sahara), and Fish Out of Water discover that aliens are preparing to invade Earth–but since no one believed Chicken Little the first time, why would they believe him now?
Though kids will enjoy the bright whizz-bang action sequences of Chicken Little, discerning parents will find the movie tedious. Technically, it has the computer animation quality of Pixar–but with none of their intelligence, heart, or simple storytelling skill. The basic idea of connecting the fable to aliens is amusing, but the script routinely bogs down in clumsy father-son issues that seem like material edited out of Finding Nemo. The jokes rarely have anything to do with the characters, but are mostly pop-culture references that are sadly out of date. The action sequences were obviously created with the inevitable video game in mind, for which the movie is little more than an advertisement. Chicken Little falls flat. —Bret Fetzer
Product Description of Walt Disney’s Chicken Little
Experience a fantastic world of breathtaking action in Disney’s hilarious new movie CHICKEN LITTLE. It’s “the perfect family film,” raves Scott Mantz of Access Hollywood. When the sky really is falling and sanity has flown the coop, who will rise to save the day? Together with his hysterical band of misfit friends, Chicken Little must hatch a plan to save the planet from alien invasion and prove that the world’s biggest hero is a little chicken. Overflowing with incredible music and bursting with exciting bonus features, including alternate openings, an exclusive “making of” featurette, games, and much more, this sensational DVD is truly something to cluck about.
Funny Movie Quotes from Chicken Little (2005)
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): [to an alien] Oh, we surrender! Here, take the key to the city!
[alien zaps the key]
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): [holds up another key] Key to my car?
[alien zaps key and car at the same time]
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): [holds a box of Tic Tacs] Tic Tac?
[alien zaps Lurkey]
Runt of the Litter: I’m sorry! I’m bad at facial cues!
Buck Cluck: [while being aimed at with particle disintegrators alongside Chicken Little] Oh, snap…
Chicken Little: [to Abby] By the way, I’d like to say I’ve always found you extremely attractive.
[he kisses her]
Abby Mallard: Now THAT’S closure.
Buck Cluck: I hear some teenagers get a major rush out of stamp-collecting!
Chicken Little: Dad, I don’t like stamps…
Mama Runt: Runt, that’s enough! Don’t make Mommy take away your Streisand collection!
Runt of the Litter: Mom! You leave Barbra out of this!
Runt of the Litter: ‘Twas Beauty that killed the Beast.
Buck Cluck: What, what? You have to go to the bathroom?
[Alien kid shakes head]
Buck Cluck: You want juice?
[kid shakes head again]
Buck Cluck: A Snack?
[kid shakes head again]
Buck Cluck: Corndog? On a stick?
[kid starts to lose temper]
Buck Cluck: Want to play some golf? What do you want?
Kirby – Alien Kid: [makes irritated noises]
Buck Cluck: I stink at this…
[repeated line]
Chicken Little: Who are we talking about?
Ace – Hollywood Chicken Little: Are you ready to rock?
Hollywood Runt: Ain’t no mountain high enough. Ain’t no valley low.
Dog Announcer: Hold your horses, everyone! And horses, hold your breath.
Chicken Little: I put on five ounces this year. I’ve really bulked up.
Ace – Hollywood Chicken Little: [to Hollywood Runt shooting alien spaceships] Give them a taste of the other white meat!
Chicken Little: Modern Mallard says that avoiding closure can lead to molting, and I’m already small and on top of that I don’t think I can handle being bald!
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): [stops a crowd] Hey, look, a penny.
Buck Cluck: One should always be ready to listen to one’s children, even if they have nothing to say.
Dog Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, it’s just gibberish. Gibberish of an insane person.
Dog Announcer: Ladies and gentlemen, I’m not gonna sugarcoat it; I’ve seen road kill with faster reflexes.
Chicken Little: There’s… there’s… it’s a… you have to… D’oh… Doo-wah!
Dog: What did he say?
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): [reading a sign-holding dog’s signs] There’s… there’s… it’s a… you have to… D’oh… Doo-wah!
Chicken Little: A piece of the sky? Shaped like a stop sign? Not again!
Chicken Little: Don’t tap the glass, they hate it when you do that.
Tina – Alien Mom: …really Melvin, someday that thing is going to hit someone in the head!
Melvin – Alien Dad: [using the big voice] SILENCE!
Tina – Alien Mom: Did you just try to use the big voice on me?
Melvin – Alien Dad: Uhhh… hmmm… uhhh… who’re we talking about?
[after Abby gets hit by a dodgeball]
Chicken Little: That does it Foxey, we were on a time-out. Prepare to hurt, and not emotionally like I do!
Runt of the Litter: No! She’s Perfect.
[joins Foxy]
Runt of the Litter: Lollipop.
[popping sound]
Runt of the Litter: Lollipop.
Alien Cop: Scary.
Mayor Turkey Lurkey (Don Knotts): Well, aside from the penny, this whole night was a wash.
Chicken Little: His name is Kirby?
Abby Mallard: His parents left without him?
Runt of the Litter: Darth Vader was Luke’s father?
Runt of the Litter: Curse these genetically tiny legs!
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