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Free Jimmy (2006)

Director: Christopher Nielsen

Time Out rating

Average user rating

17 reviews

Movie review

From Time Out London

This adult-orientated, computer-generated animation isn’t an especially successful outing but still serves as an impressive antidote to the Disney-Pixar norm. It was written and directed in 2006 by Norway’s Christopher Nielsen, and Simon Pegg has since turned his hand to writing an English screenplay for it while a host of named actors – including Woody Harrelson, Jim Broadbent and Pegg – have added their vocal weight. The result is a gritty Scandinavia-set stoner comedy replete with a raft of unkempt cockney-esque characters, some hit-and-miss comic moments, dank locations, rampant copulation, much spliff-smoking and more effing and blinding than you’ll find on any football terrace. Yet part of the story here is undeniably touching, poignant, even childlike in its depiction of animal exploitation.

Jimmy is an endearing but malnourished Russian circus elephant with ripped earlobes and broken tusks. Not only is he kept in check with a cocktail of uppers and downers, but some Russian smuggler has sewn seven kilos of heroin into his arse. When the film’s main characters – a group of hired dope fiends – screws up his medication, Jimmy dashes off into the wild and the film switches to road-trip mode as he’s pursued by Lappish mafia, Scottish hunters and incompetent animal activists. The film sports an enjoyable ‘Shaft’-inspired soundtrack, some pretty deft animation and a most un-Disneyfied ending. It’s just not as funny as it could have been.

Author: Derek Adams

Time Out London Issue 1991, Oct 16 – 22, 2008

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User reviews of this film

Jeppe said...

Posted on Oct 27 2008 14:14 Great movie!

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Dark Horse said...

Posted on Oct 25 2008 09:19 Dark fun os the best fun!

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JCase said...

Posted on Oct 25 2008 01:13 The Elephant is a metaphor for one of Norways greats artists ever, its a har to translate kind of thing. Fantastic movie, uniquely done

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jonnieboy said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 23:11 Intresting to see how the wievers get the movie, but the critic don't. Mr. Adams: THE AIM OF THIS MOVIE ISN'T TO BE AS FUNNY AS POSSIBLE! Then it woldn't have been this good, you see...

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Jarl said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 16:03 Great story. Great animation. Excellent voice.

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James Hunt said said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 15:04 Jimmy is a metaphor. You need to understand that to get the film. How he is a metaphor? Well, you need to figure that one out yourself, halv the fun!

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Norwegian said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 14:35 It`s a fantastic movie. If you know something about the background og the director, you will appreciate it more as well. His brother was an artist with a serious drugproblem. And he was fed the drugs by the "circus" a.k.a the musicindustry...until he died some years ago...

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Norwegian Dude said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 14:24 Hahaha,
I loved this movie when i saw it in norway, but i thinkg its hard to make it fly in english. A lot (most actually) of the jokes can't translated. It's a great exampel of how we norwegians view americans, north-norwegianses, lappish-peopel. and yeah well dope fiends. For instance on the driving liscense of the north-norwegians (i'm guessing that your scotts) it says HB (Hjemmebrennt), which means moonshine (homemade spirits) which is there favorit drink beverage of those peopel. And just the way they talk, (the junkies for instance; the words they use are very charactoristic for the junkies of oslo).
So all in all i can understand why it got so bad critcs abroad. But my freaking god is funny for us norwegians :P

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Mist said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 14:18 Great, great, GREAT movie. Stunning animation and a "fun" storyline. If you go in expecting a disney/pixar animation with their their standard recipie to make you laugh you will be either dispirited, or THRILLED as I was. This movie demands something of the viewer. It's not a animation where the creators make you feel smart every time you pick up on their "obscure" references to other films etc. This film will pull your heartstrings and make you laugh. Bring your friends, not your kids.

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Pjalle said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 14:02 Honestly a great great movie. The fact that it's getting slaughtered in the papers tell more about the critics than this suberb dark humoured diamond of a movie

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Glitter said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 13:57 Fantastic! I love that elephant...

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Chris never miss said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 13:45 Loved it! Funny as hell!

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Gimme PIXAR said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 13:38 Terrible, awful! Rubbish animation, terrible script, not funny, depressing use of colour and simply extremely boring. Worst animated film ever, and I've seen pretty much all of'em.

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Jim Butt said...

Posted on Oct 24 2008 13:26 Hoenstly - I love this movie! Nielsen have made a masterpiece here! See it - and you'll love it!

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Luca said...

Posted on Oct 22 2008 14:42 A refreshing dark animation comedy. Funny and sad as life can be, straight to the point. Realistically crude with a touch of humanity.
A story about drug abuse, friendship and greed with a different ending then the usual happy go lucky one...a good way of facing reality .

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