Review by Jenny Priestley
Stars the voices of Brendan Gleeson, Evan McGuire, Christen Mooney, Mick Lally, Venise du Bois du Roy, Liam Hourican, Michael McGrath, Paul Tylack, Paul Young
Written by Tomm Moore & Fabrice Zoilkowski
Certification UK PG | Australia PG
Runtime 78 minutes
Directed by Tomm Moore & Nora Twomey
To say The Secret Of Kells has taken a long time to reach UK cinema screens is something of an understatement. I saw it at the Edinburgh International Film Festival in June 20009. So I was one of the few who wasn't surprised when it got a nomination at this year's Oscars.
It's a pretty simple set-up, Brendan is a young boy living in a remote village under seige from barbarian raids. When a famed illustrator comes to visit, Brendan has the opportunity to break away from his overbearing uncle's rule and escape to the enchanted forest where he meets a young wolf-girl called Aisling.
It's a traditional 2D animation, but it's a luscious animation which draws you in as the story unfolds. The only real name is Brendan Gleeson as Brendan's uncle but I felt that was a good thing as it meant there are no 'big names' to take you out of the story. This is a lovely film that will appeal to kids and adults alike and allows you to lose yourself within it. It's good to see an animation that isn't from the Pixar or DreamWorks stable (not that I don't like their work, or in Pixar's case, love it), but this is a true independent animation and deserves to be seen.