Skunkyrate Gripping story with well-crafted characters

BroadcastChic Excellent, a Must See

Livestonth I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

Deanna There are moments in this movie where the great movie it could've been peek out... They're fleeting, here, but they're worth savoring, and they happen often enough to make it worth your while.

bscrivener-50810 The final part of the original Wallace & Gromit trilogy. A Close Shave packs the charm, humour and love that we had for the previous two in an all new adventure. This third part gives us a shift in tone and change of theme, briefly delving into horror and thriller elements (intended as a parody) while retaining its comedic and childish subject matter. The story follows Wallace's latest line of business, window-cleaning and his collection of quirky new inventions. While on a job he meets Wendoline, a local shop- keeper in which the two become very attached, and also her mysterious and silent pet dog, Preston. Gromit, instantly becoming suspicious of Preston begins to investigate him after a sheep, escaped the previous night from the truck he was driving and broke into their home. Gromit is then later framed by Preston for being a sheep killer and is imprisoned for life. Separating him from Wallace in a similarly emotional scene to The Wrong Trousers. After Wallace with the help of the escaped sheep (Shaun) bust out Gromit and later come across Preston and Wendoline in a field, sheep- rustling they chase them down before Wallace and Wendoline become trapped and leaving Shaun and Gromit to save the day. After a final showdown, the film closes with Wendoline and Wallace parting ways (after humorously she dislikes cheese. Also noting she isn't a good fit due to her criminal behaviour.) While A Close Shave is generally a family-friendly and fun film to all to enjoy. Unlike it's predecessor it does have a few flaws. The first being too many sub- plots which seem to overcrowd the story, leaving to scenes such as Wendoline and Wallace's relationship and Gromit's imprisonment feeling rushed and under developed. Furthermore, the final showdown between Preston and Gromit felt underwhelming, making Preston's intimidating and dominating presence feel diminished. However, A Close Shave definitely deserves praise for its shift into darker themes while keeping it's childish humour and wit, as well as the introduction of more beloved characters such as Shaun the Sheep. 8/10

SnoopyStyle A sheep escapes the rustlers into the home of Wallace and Gromit and starts destroying their home without being noticed. Then the boys get a job to wash windows in a wool store. Wallace falls immediately for the owner Wendolene. Her inventor father left the store and his evil dog Preston to her. There is a wool shortage and the rustlers are being blamed. The guys return to find the little sheep and tries to wash it in the Knit-o-Matic. It goes wrong and the sheep is given a Close Shave. Preston steals the Knit-o-Matic design and then later frames Gromit for the sheep stealing. Gromit is put in jail while Preston continues with his evil plans.Wallace and Gromit are great as usual. The addition of the love story is limited in fun. The guys are once again thrown into a crazy adventure. It's not quite as good as 'The Wrong Trousers' but it's still a generally good show for the whole family. I just need more Feathers McGraw.

Horst in Translation (filmreviews@web.de) Right after watching and loving The Wrong Trousers, I decided to give Park's follow-up a re-watch. I have to say as much as he succeeded with mixing crime and western elements into his last work, he comes short here when it comes to romance and mystery. While the occasional laugh can't be denied to any W&G picture, including this one, the whole sheep rustling mystery plot left me completely unimpressed. While the Wallace-Wendolene love story seems charming at first, mostly due to how she mirrors him so much down to her "dog" reading the paper Gromit-style, it quickly becomes unnecessary and boring (almost cringe-worthy during the "leave-me-alone"-sequence) to the extent that one feels nothing during the final action scene and also their final encounter at Wallace's door. Completely unrelated, even Gromit was surprisingly uninteresting here, to the extent that his prison breakdown, which could have been a huge tearjerker moment, didn't do much for me.The one truly remarkable thing I take from this one are the sheep. Obviously they're very early versions of Park's later work in Shaun the Sheep and Timmy Time, which I both enjoy a lot and would recommend over this one. They pretty much raise every scene they're in, especially the original one funnily being dressed in a pullover of its own wool for most of the movie. However, unless you're huge claymation fan, you can do without this half hour.

MartinHafer This is the third Wallace & Gromit short. As you'd expect, the quality of the character design is greatly improved from the first Wallace & Gromit short. Instead of the claymation, soft plastic figures that are poseable are used instead. Additionally, the sets are much more complex and detailed. Now this isn't to say that the stuff in the earlier films is bad--far from it. It's just that with each successive project, the artistry improves.The only complaint I have about this delightful film, and it's a minor one, is that by this third short, the story has become a lot more fanciful and action-packed. In this film, less time is spent being laid-back and gentle (as well as very English) and Gromit even gets to fight against a cyborg dog! But, in spite of this, the film still works very well. Additionally, if you watch this film and the later full-length movie, WALLACE & GROMIT AND THE CURSE OF THE WERE-RABBIT, you'll see that there are some similarities in the stories. The dog is pretty similar as is his owner to the lady in the full-length film. Again, these really aren't complaints as much as observations.Overall, a wonderful short film and one you can't help but love. It's wonderful and I can certainly understand why it, too, won an Oscar for Best Animated Short (like its predecessor).