Blinky Bill the Movie

Good movie!

Now I understand I'm watching this as an adult and not with a childlike mind or sense of wonderment but, my 5 year-old and 9 year-old kids were so bored they walked away. I watched to see what was happening and I have to say, I understand why they walked off. It is terrible. There are so many great kids movies and incredible animated features to watch, new and classic - this isn't one of them. I remember feeling a little sad for my kids that I missed the theatrical release of this movie, for them. There was such a big ruckus about it, as if it was a milestone for Australian animated features. So I bought it for them when it became available. It has sat on the shelf for weeks now and no one is interested. And I don't care if they never play it again. A very mis-able movie.

I sat through this film with my four-year old son, his friend and their parent, all of whom enjoyed the film barring myself. This reboot will be disappointing for those who have fond memories of the original movies and TV series by Yoram Gross Film Studio (based on the children's books by Dorothy Wall) now known as Flying Bark Productions, with a less adorable animation style and some different characters. I strongly feel that this movie is an embarrassment to modern Australia, perpetuating cultural stereotypes projected by iconic relics such as 'Crocodile Dundee' and the late Steve Irwin. 'Blinky Bill: The Movie' (nobody could think of a better title?) loosely espouses some community values and environmental messages under a good vs evil theme, and the title character embarks on an 'Indiana Jones'-inspired journey with plenty of action scenes. Unfortunately, the screenplay is weak, characters are lacklustre, and about %99 of the dialogue is indecipherable and/or irritating. Being Australian-born myself and having lived in several Australian states, I found the meaningless phrases uttered in harsh accents very painful to my ears. Notable characters include a villainous cat impersonating Scar from Disney's 'The Lion King' movies, two female emus voiced by Toni Collette doing an excellent imitation of the title characters in 'Kath and Kim', and a sunstroke-affected wombat somewhat channelling the murderer in 'Wolf Creek'. Curiously, humans that encounter the animals in the story never seem to question their outlandishly anthropomorphic and inventive qualities. There's a joke thrown in for adults, which I felt to be trashy compared to the intelligent humour often found in better-quality children's films. Nonetheless, young children will no doubt be delighted by this mischievous koala's adventures. Personally, I won't be allowing this film (or the new TV show) to appear on any screens in my home, at least until my children are able to discern outdated colloquialisms from proper speech.

source: Blinky Bill the Movie

I went to watch this movie and I found it OK, but I would never watch it again. There was nothing wrong with it, but the CGI looked like it had been done by a bunch of yobbos who needed something to fill in their time; the animals looked like they were made of cheap plasticine and the script was poor. You could watch much worse movies than this, but there are millions of better ones

Now I understand I'm watching this as an adult and not with a childlike mind or sense of wonderment but, my 5 year-old and 9 year-old kids were so bored they walked away. I watched to see what was happening and I have to say, I understand why they walked off. It is terrible. There are so many great kids movies and incredible animated features to watch, new and classic - this isn't one of them. I remember feeling a little sad for my kids that I missed the theatrical release of this movie, for them. There was such a big ruckus about it, as if it was a milestone for Australian animated features. So I bought it for them when it became available. It has sat on the shelf for weeks now and no one is interested. And I don't care if they never play it again. A very mis-able movie.

I'm astonished at the number of poor reviews here - what a bunch of party-poops! Clearly all the good Aussie fun passed over their dour heads - or they were fussing so much over the movie's departure from the ethos of the original series that they couldn't let themselves appreciate it for what it is. This is a high-quality animated film sporting a star-studded cast of some of Australia's most famous voices clearly having great fun portraying many of our iconic creatures. The script makes no pretense of sticking to reality or even logic and good luck to them! No child watching it will have any problem with it's inconsistencies, so why should the adults? Even the blue of the wombat's vehicle being left- hand drive is kinda funny when you think about it. A classic escape from an Australian classic.

This reviewer missed the plot completely. The bush is a noisy place, a cacophony of sound. The chatter and crackle go on and on at a dizzy place. Normally, we humans only hear a small part but if we listen carefully there is a lot going on and the film makers captured this wonderfully. I was returned to a child's place as I watched this move in wonder and awe. So many obvious cliches were avoided brilliantly and this made me grin. I'm sure I missed a lot as there was so much going on so I will be sure to watch this again and again. Yes, the cat was overdone but the Lyre bird was fabulous A great Aussie movie for young and old.

Being somebody who does have a fondness for Yoram Gross' work, most of which are good representations of Australian animation apart from the odd disappointment. The Dot film series and Blinky Bill are notable examples. So when hearing that there was an animated film from 2015, part of me was enthused and was interested into seeing it. After watching it, it is watchable and has its likability, but it was rather disappointing as to how unremarkable the overall film felt at the end of the day. Those who grew up with Blinky Bill may find themselves disappointed at 'Blinky Bill: The Movie' missing an opportunity to bring back the original voice cast even for a short appearance or doing it in hand-drawn animation, which would have made it feel closer in spirit. Nothing is done terribly in 'Blinky Bill: The Movie', but not much is done exceptionally at the same time. The most consistent aspects are the music and voice acting. The music is rich in energy and robust as well as with times where it's pathos-filled and understated. The voice acting is very good all round from the likes of Ryan Kwanten, Toni Collette, Rufus Sewell, Richard Roxburgh and Barry Humphries, with the only regret really not bringing the original voice actors back even it was just for a short appearance. Even though they don't have much depth to them the characters are cute and likable, with Blinky showing easily identifiable traits (apart from the lying to his mother). The Australian stereotypes can be pretty cringe-worthy however. Animation in 'Blinky Bill: The Movie' is a mixed bag. Done in CGI rather than traditional hand drawn animation, there has certainly been far worse-looking CGI (looking at you Video Brinquedo and Spark Plug Entertainment) but far better as well (Pixar for example). The colours are bright and colourful and the characters mostly well modelled but the backgrounds can lack detail and fluidity, they don't look that vivid and transitions can look choppy and unfinished. Writing is also mixed. There are some amusing moments, the film certainly has its heart in the right place and does have a lot of heart and charm and the messaging of perseverance amongst others are sincerely presented. It is cliché ridden however, with some crude adult humour and language too that really doesn't belong with the rest of the film, just felt like a clumsy attempt to draw in a wider audience. Story is one of the weaker assets, despite having a lovely idea that actually is not that far off in spirit to Gross' Blinky Bill outings. It does have parts that are bright and breezy and there is heart and charm. Other parts are rather pedestrian and the film never shakes off its constant and at times excessive predictability. Overall, watchable but unremarkable. 5/10 Bethany Cox

I sat through this film with my four-year old son, his friend and their parent, all of whom enjoyed the film barring myself. This reboot will be disappointing for those who have fond memories of the original movies and TV series by Yoram Gross Film Studio (based on the children's books by Dorothy Wall) now known as Flying Bark Productions, with a less adorable animation style and some different characters. I strongly feel that this movie is an embarrassment to modern Australia, perpetuating cultural stereotypes projected by iconic relics such as 'Crocodile Dundee' and the late Steve Irwin. 'Blinky Bill: The Movie' (nobody could think of a better title?) loosely espouses some community values and environmental messages under a good vs evil theme, and the title character embarks on an 'Indiana Jones'-inspired journey with plenty of action scenes. Unfortunately, the screenplay is weak, characters are lacklustre, and about %99 of the dialogue is indecipherable and/or irritating. Being Australian-born myself and having lived in several Australian states, I found the meaningless phrases uttered in harsh accents very painful to my ears. Notable characters include a villainous cat impersonating Scar from Disney's 'The Lion King' movies, two female emus voiced by Toni Collette doing an excellent imitation of the title characters in 'Kath and Kim', and a sunstroke-affected wombat somewhat channelling the murderer in 'Wolf Creek'. Curiously, humans that encounter the animals in the story never seem to question their outlandishly anthropomorphic and inventive qualities. There's a joke thrown in for adults, which I felt to be trashy compared to the intelligent humour often found in better-quality children's films. Nonetheless, young children will no doubt be delighted by this mischievous koala's adventures. Personally, I won't be allowing this film (or the new TV show) to appear on any screens in my home, at least until my children are able to discern outdated colloquialisms from proper speech.