Strike Parent Guide

A young mole named Mungo Morrison (Lizzie Waterworth) dreams of becoming a football star but is expected to carry on the family legacy by getting a job at the town gold mine. When a tragedy is orchestrated by a greedy mogul known as “The Boss” (Ken Stott), who is intent on buying the town’s mine, Mungo must find a way to save his community and make his dreams come true.

Strike is the first film produced by Gigglefish Animation Studios; a new stop-motion animation studio based in England. If their debutis any indication of things to come, I think these newcomers have the potential to become a respected fixture in the stop-motion world. The style of the film is very distinctive, with a homemade, crafty look. Many of the backgrounds and props are made from recycled objects, and the characters are made out of fuzzy materials over armatures, which is a departure from the traditional smooth clay used in similar productions. It does take a minute to get used to it, and your mileage may vary in terms of finding it creepy or not. The art form is used effectively to create a variety of humorous sight gags, which I found to be funnier than any of the spoken jokes.

Unfortunately, this movie does reflect the studio’s inexperience. The script needed some editing; it feels like its runtime and the story is padded with unnecessary scenes and subplots. A more seasoned writer could have tightened it up, which would have created a more focused final product. There are glimmers of great writing, however. Many of the characters are well realized and relatable, and there are sweet, emotional moments. Hedy (Lizzie Waterworth) is a standout as Mungo’s best friend, who gives off strong Wednesday Addams vibes.

In terms of content, Strike is more violent than I expected from a movie about a soccer playing mole. There are multiple explosions (one resulting in deaths), a character is eaten by piranhas, and the antagonist shoots at the main characters with a gun multiple times. There is also an excess of potty humor, which got annoying after a while for me, but my three-year-old laughed a lot.

For me, Strike is an ok watch. It’s not amazing, but it’s also not bad. There are enough content concerns that I hesitate to recommend it for all audiences, but it has charm and creativity that save it from striking out.