Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009) is more than just one of the best Wes Anderson movies or one of the best animated movies—it’s one of the best movies, period. A singular work of creativity and charm that continues to inspire, entertain, and resonate.

‘Fantastic Mr. Fox’ Movie Review

Fantastic Mr. Fox has gone from a modest cult hit to one of the most influential and beloved entries in Wes Anderson’s filmography. What once felt like an odd stylistic detour now stands as a pivotal moment not just in Anderson’s career, but in modern animation. With its meticulous stop-motion design, dry wit, and warm storytelling, Fantastic Mr. Fox has become a generational touchstone—particularly for younger cinephiles (like myself) who saw their first glimpse of boundary-pushing filmmaking in its hand-crafted fur, miniature sets, and deadpan delivery.

Released between The Darjeeling Limited and Moonrise Kingdom, Fantastic Mr. Fox represents a turning point in Anderson’s career. Before it, his films, though stylized, felt grounded in real-world settings that he was molding to fit his aesthetic. After Fantastic Mr. Fox, something changed. His work began to feel more self-contained, like complete worlds built entirely from scratch. The shift toward constructed, dollhouse-like storytelling—fully controlled in every frame—seems directly influenced by his time animating foxes, badgers, and weasels in a film that required total control over every movement, every twitch, every background detail.

And yet despite its long-reaching impact on Anderson’s stylistic evolution, Fantastic Mr. Fox also succeeds as an endlessly rewatchable and wildly entertaining family film. Adapted from Roald Dahl’s children’s novel, the film follows the charming but reckless Mr. Fox (George Clooney), who, bored with his safe domestic life, plans a trio of heists against three ruthless farmers—Boggis, Bunce, and Bean. The heists set off a chain reaction, leading the farmers to retaliate with scorched-earth vengeance that threatens not just Mr. Fox, but his entire animal community.

The voice cast is stellar. Meryl Streep brings gentle strength as Mrs. Fox, while Jason Schwartzman delivers a perfect mix of insecurity and bravado as their son Ash. Eric Chase Anderson voices Kristofferson, the athletic and soft-spoken cousin who threatens Ash’s sense of identity. Surrounding them is a classic ensemble of Wes Anderson regulars, including Bill Murray as the dryly sarcastic Badger, Willem Dafoe as the sinister Rat, Owen Wilson, Wallace Wolodarsky, and Brian Cox. The three villainous farmers are voiced with menace by Robin Hurlstone, Hugo Guinness, and Michael Gambon.

What elevates Fantastic Mr. Fox beyond other family films (and even beyond most animated features) is its sheer confidence in tone. It never panders, never explains itself, and never slows down to telegraph emotional beats. The humor is smart and quick, the visuals packed with details that reward endless rewatches, and the pacing tight and assured. The film trusts its audience, kids and adults alike, to keep up.

It also arrives as part of a golden age in animation—releasing within a few years of Coraline, WALL-E, Ratatouille, Ponyo, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, and Toy Story 3. And yet, even among that remarkable company, Fantastic Mr. Fox stands out. Its stop-motion animation, crafted with loving imperfection, feels as tactile and intimate as a handmade storybook. It’s cinematic without being showy, heartfelt without ever dipping into sentimentality.

Wes Anderson would return to stop-motion nearly a decade later with Isle of Dogs (2018), a visually rich and often wonderful film that still somehow doesn’t match the inventiveness or joy of Fantastic Mr. Fox. That’s not a knock on Isle of Dogs—it’s simply a testament to how lightning-in-a-bottle perfect Fantastic Mr. Fox is. From the needle drops to the script’s endless quotability (“Are you cussing with me?”), this is a film that continues to feel fresh no matter how many times you watch it.

READ MORE MOVIE REVIEWS: Polytechnique, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Prince of Broadway

Fantastic Mr. Fox is more than just one of the best Wes Anderson movies or one of the best animated movies—it’s one of the best movies, period. A singular work of creativity, charm, and cinematic mastery that continues to inspire, entertain, and resonate.

Score: 10/10