A Grand Night In: The Story of Aardman (2015)

Wonderful Movie

Good start, but then it gets ruined

Entertaining from beginning to end, it maintains the spirit of the franchise while establishing it's own seal with a fun cast

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

An amusing albeit truncated doc on Aardman Studios is a delight giving those in on the know what made the studio what it is & a nice intro to those who are unfamiliar w/their characters & adventures.

This film is a celebration of Aardman, describing its humble origins and its breakthrough successes, with doting commentary from various people who have worked for or with the studio. It's a fun hour that'll go by in a flash for anyone who loves Aardman, but it doesn't go too deep into the film-making process-which could probably warrant its own entire documentary.

This is one the most fun documentaries one can ever see. Why? Because it's about the brilliant British studio, Ardman, home of Morph, Wallace and Gromit and Shaun the sheep. As I watched this and saw all the accolades that fellow animators lay upon the studio, who take years to complete their stop motion brilliance, one thought was what did Ray Harryhausen think of this? And another was, oh my goodness, I have to watch all my Wallace and Gromit's again as well as my Shaun the Sheeps! Ardman is to stop motion what Michelangelo is to art. They are the tops and this whirlwind documentary - which I wish could have been longer - is simply so engrossing, that one is sucked in and when it's over you go what? Where did the time go?

Really fun and interesting story of the founders, the faces, the voices, animators that have made animated bits, shorts, and full length features. I hadn't realized that they started back in 1970. Was great to see what everyone looks like, since we only see their clay characters. David Throxton and Peter Lord had founded the company way back, but the star of this show seems to be Nick Park, who started with A Grand Day Out... thus the title of this documentary, A Grand Night In ! Apparently aardman animation had been contributing to British television shows for YEARS... and of course, they did the Peter Gabriel Sledge Hammer video. If you haven't rented the "Wallace and Gromit" collection of three shorts, (Wrong Trousers, A Grand Day Out, and Creature Comforts") you MUST! and the full length ones are awesome too. (Close Shave, Chicken Run) Take a moment and read the HUGE names in the cast list for this documentary, and that will give you an idea of the great voices that have been connected with Aardman films. It features many of the scenes from the shorts and full lengthers that they have done, but it's fun to hear commentary from everyone involved. Park has won four Oscars for animation, and has been nominated for two more. Pretty impressive. It's sixty minutes, well spent. Currently showing on Netflix.