Since the first Shaun the Sheep Movie got nominated for the Animated Feature Oscar, the series has really grown on me. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the first film, mostly because I really didn’t understand the charm of the characters, and the plot dragged to the point of being boring at times. It’s been over a decade since that initial release, and at this point, I chalk the flaws up to the transition from television to the big screen. The follow-up, Farmageddon, ended up being a lot of fun, and with The Beast of Mossy Bottom, I’m ready to declare myself fully on board, so much so that I now want to go back and actually watch the TV show.
Although this latest edition has the least involvement from creator Nick Park, directors Steve Cox and Matthew Walker acquit themselves admirably, turning in a genuinely entertaining and silly spectacle that gives the target audience of little, little kids a degree of intellectual credit. Really, that’s the genius of the entire franchise. This is a series where the crux of the comedy is purely visual, hinging on the hilarity of the scenery and the actions of the characters to get the story and gags across rather than through dialogue. Literally no character speaks in these films. While there are voice actors in the cast, the humans only communicate in grunts and other emotive noises, while the animals like Shaun and his flock only use their natural sounds with the occasional snickering giggle. Because of this conceit, the films essentially demand your undivided attention, because if you turn away, you’ll inevitably miss something important, as there are no verbal prompts to get you back on track. In a world where “second screen” filmmaking is a thing, committing to this format is a refreshing way to keep the young ones engaged, much to the delight of the parents in the theatre, I’m sure.
But that’s been the case since the beginning, so what makes this particular installment so enjoyable? Well, I put it down to a number of things. First and foremost is the quality of the story. While a movie like this will never go out of its way to genuinely scare the kiddies, there is a delightful, madcap edge to the plot where horror is definitely in play, but it’s approached from an empathetic angle, which serves as a great moral for the youngest viewers while still being quite goofy. There’s nothing truly morbid or macabre like in The Nightmare Before Christmas, but there’s just enough eeriness to keep the children in suspense throughout.
As the picture begins, we’re a few days before Halloween, and the animals at Mossy Bottom Farm are getting ready for some autumnal frivolity. As ever, Shaun (“voiced” by Justin Fletcher) and his gang are up to a bit of mischief against the watchful eye of Bitzer the dog (John Sparkes), who keeps them in line. For the upcoming Halloween Hoedown, the sheep have been secretly growing large pumpkins, hiding them from view with a literal backdrop screen. Meanwhile, the Farmer (also Sparkes) has two tickets to the Hoedown and wants to ask the local Veterinarian (Nina Sosanya) to accompany him as his date, though he’s a bit self-conscious about his receding hairline, and has run out of his hair regrowth ointment.
The introduction of the Vet is what I’m talking about when I say the flick is willing to hint at horror without actually doing anything scary. When she pulls up in her van, we don’t see her face, nor do we see anything identifiable on the vehicle itself, as the camera intentionally obfuscates. We just see a shadowy figure approach the farm, and all the animals run into hiding as she gets nearer, all for the “terror” to be paid off with her just cornering the flock and giving them all booster shots before the reveal. It’s a fairly clever entry point into the tropes of genre filmmaking, and the youngest viewer won’t really understand what’s going on until the moment of truth. Everyone over the age of 10 will spot it instantly, but that doesn’t make it trite. For us, it’s a nice callback to a longstanding storytelling device. For the youngsters, it’s completely novel.
Anyway, due to shenanigans, the pumpkin patch is destroyed, leaving the sheep quite sad, especially the smallest and most impressionable of the bunch, Timmy (also Fletcher), who was really looking forward to carving a huge jack-o-lantern for the occasion (another fun nod to horror is that Timmy gleefully wants to use a chainsaw for the task). Shaun comforts him, and then has an idea to salvage their project. Consulting a book on “homemade” science (how he reads is not for them to explain nor for us to ask), he comes up with a scheme to concoct a fast-growing potion, and applies it to a seed from one of the smashed pumpkins while Billy Corgan smiles knowingly. We get a lovely fantasy sequence where Shaun sets up a lab in the farm’s disused windmill and becomes a mad scientist for a bit, and the plan seems to work, with a whole new crop of giant gourds growing overnight. When the sheep discover Shaun’s success, they are a touch worried about the fact that the pumpkins continue to grow right in front of them, but largely dismiss it as something to deal with later, with the size increase for now only promising more fun carving time.
Shaun’s big mistake, however, is that he has stored this potion in the empty bottle of hair growth formula. When the Farmer discovers it, he assumes he had another full bottle and applies it vigorously to his scalp. The next morning, just as the sheep are seeing the fruits of their experiment, the Farmer becomes more massive and gets covered in hair, to the point that he cannot see properly, and is completely unrecognizable. Hijinks ensue as he unintentionally runs amok through the town, causing an angry mob to form amongst the citizenry, while the Vet researches cryptozoology (all truly qualified animal doctors keep such books in their offices) to try to save what looks to be a sasquatch from the pitchforks and torches of the townspeople.
To me, this is just an incredibly clever story idea. It’s a well-worn plot based on the raw beats, but it’s presented in a way that’s familiar while still being a bit daring and experimental. There’s a strong sense of empathy created by having the Farmer turn into the “monster,” letting the kids know that not all “scary” things are truly evil or wicked. Having him and the Vet both be interested in each other romantically – though with slapstick stymying throughout – is a nice touch because it shows that anything can still be worthy of love. Having Timmy serve as the audience cipher rather than Shaun or Bitzer for the most part (Timmy is the emotional center as the antics play out, and he’s the one brilliant enough to come up with a real solution to the problem) is encouraging to the developing minds watching in the auditorium. Yes, it’s all monumentally absurd, but there’s an intelligence in the approach that will resonate with the target audience and give them a competent introduction to the genre.
From there, it’s all about having fun with the animation and the references. The stop-motion is as strong as ever, par for the course from Aardman Studios. The characters are richly designed, highly expressive, and have limitless comedic potential. Where this picture separates itself from Farmageddon and the original Shaun the Sheep Movie is in the lighting schemes and the scale of the various scenes. You can tell that the miniature sets are much larger than in previous entries, at least in relative terms. While Farmageddon leaned heavily into science fiction aesthetics, Beast of Mossy Bottom gives itself an identity through a coordinated use of wide-eyed reaction shots and a color palette that emphasizes oranges, greens, and purples to great effect.
The nods to horror classics, both hardcore and campy, only enhance the experience, especially for the adults in the room. Before the plot even starts, we get a pristine homage to Michael Jackson’s Thriller video. The Farmer’s monstrous form evokes images of Gossamer from Looney Tunes. When the initial pumpkins are destroyed, the goo inside oozes like blood and gore. The Farmer’s transformation starts out funny but does occasionally approach body horror. In the climax, we see the giant pumpkins rolling down the street in a clear hat tip to Attack of the Killer Tomatoes, and any film that can pull off a legitimate nod to one of the best B-movie romps ever will always get my respect.
Even outside of the referential material, there are some strong jokes. As the Farmer rampages, there’s a decent bit of commentary about screen addiction, as an influencer (Love Island‘s Dani Dyer) runs screaming from the monster, but only if she can get a good selfie angle as she livestreams, while a skateboarding teen casually sits on a bench and watches the video, ignoring the actual people involved running past him in the moment. It’s really spot on. I think my favorite gag is a set piece of two booths set up in the town square selling Halloween items. The booths are labeled “Tricks” and “Treats,” and appropriately, in the latter you can buy candy while at the former you buy eggs and toilet rolls. Again, all of these bits have to pop visually, because there’s no dialogue to translate the humor, so all of this imagery has to be clever and memorable, and these bits succeed in spades.
Yes, you can certainly nitpick a lot of things, even within this nonsense universe. For example, there’s absolutely no consistency in how the pumpkins or the Farmer get larger. This is especially true for the Farmer, as he only applied the experimental ointment to his scalp, and yet his arms, chest, and feet expand when it’s comically convenient, and he grows a foot in height in the process, all at the whim of the screenwriter. By contrast, by soaking the entire pumpkin seed in the goo before planting it in the soil, it makes more sense for the entirety of it to grow in a uniform manner. As I mentioned earlier, it beggars belief, even in this silly context, for a veterinarian to have books on mythological creatures in her office. There’s an action scene where the Farmer is being loaded onto a cargo ship, with Bitzer and the sheep in pursuit, and they somehow can catch up with it leaving port on their tiny limbs. Most of this you can chalk up to cartoon rules and physics, but you definitely will notice a couple of scenes that are artificially padded out to accommodate these moments.
Really, if there’s a true criticism of the film, it’s that this isn’t a “Shaun the Sheep” movie in the strictest sense. This is much more about the Farmer and Timmy. Again, I haven’t watched the show yet, so I don’t know how much screen time is shared between the characters throughout various media, but in the flick it’s quite noticeable that Shaun kind of fades into the background at a lot of crucial moments in favor of his younger companion and his owner. Shaun is the catalyst for the events of the plot, but for the most part his major scenes are in isolation rather than driving the narrative. The first two movies were decidedly about Shaun, with the first showing him leading the antics and having a back-and-forth with Bitzer, and the second one focusing on the adventure and bond he forms with the alien Lu-La. But here? He may have his name in the title, but he’s easily the third-most important character. I don’t particularly mind, as I love expanding this world, and Timmy is flipping adorable, but I can see a situation where devoted fans would want a more active lead.
All in all, this is just innocent, cheeky fun, which is what we always love from Aardman, and the zaniness fits a safe Halloween format to a tee. We’re getting into Awards Season, and there are some strong contenders for Animated Feature next year, with Hoppers and Toy Story 5 looking like early favorites to put Pixar back on top for the first time since Soul. But as far as I’m concerned, the other three spots are there for the taking. We’ll see how Forgotten Island, Wildwood, and Hexed do as fall goes on, and I’d even say there’s an outside chance for The Cat in the Hat, even though it looks like complete bullshit based on the trailers. But don’t count these loveable ovines out just yet. I see a lot of animated films each year, and this should certainly be in the mix as one of the better options for 2026.
Grade: B
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