Animals United facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Animals United |
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German theatrical release poster
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German:
English: |
| Music by | David Newman |
| Editing by | Alexander Dittner |
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| Distributed by | Constantin Film |
| Release date(s) | 7 October 2010 |
| Running time | 93 minutes |
| Country | Germany |
| Language | German English |
| Money made | 51,8 Mio $ (worldwide) |
Animals United (which means Conference of the Animals in German) is a fun 3D computer-animated movie from 2010. It was directed and produced by Reinhard Klooss and Holger Tappe. The film came out in Germany on October 7, 2010.
The story is about a brave meerkat named Billy and a wise lion named Socrates. They live in the Okavango Delta in Africa. They go on an exciting journey to find out why their river has suddenly dried up. The movie is based on a book from 1949 by Erich Kästner. An earlier cartoon version of the book was made in 1969. Famous actors like James Corden, Stephen Fry, and Andy Serkis lent their voices to the English version of the film.
Plot
The story takes place in the sunny Okavango Delta in Africa. The main characters are Billy the meerkat and Socrates the lion. The yearly flood hasn't come. Water is very hard to find. The animals living there are fighting over the little water left.
Billy and Socrates decide to look for more water. During their search, they meet a group of animals from all over the world. These animals include Sushi the polar bear, Toby the kangaroo, and Smiley the Tasmanian devil. There are also two very old Galápagos tortoises named Winifred and Winston. Charles the rooster and Toto the chimpanzee join them too. All these animals have had their homes or lives affected by humans. They have traveled to Africa looking for a safe place.
The animals soon discover why the Delta has no water. A big dam has been built. This dam provides power for a fancy resort owned by a man named Mr. Smith. A hunter named Hunter captures Socrates. The other animals manage to escape.
The animals then hold a meeting. Winifred and Winston explain how dangerous the future could be for animals. Sadly, Winifred and Winston pass away after the meeting. The next day, Billy and the other animals travel through a dangerous area called the "Valley of Death." They are heading towards the dam. Hunter tries to stop them using a small plane. But Toto bravely stops him. A huge group of locusts then attacks the humans. They eat everything, even their clothes!
Maya, who is Mr. Smith's kind daughter, frees Socrates. She also sends Hunter away. At the bottom of the dam, the buffaloes and rhinos charge. Billy throws a rock into a chute in the dam. This causes a missile from Hunter's plane to explode. The dam is destroyed, and the water flows freely again! To celebrate the water's return, the animals have a big party. After the party, the animals travel to New York City. The movie ends with them walking through the city. You can hear blue whales calling in the background.
Characters
Meerkats
- Billy is a gray meerkat with green eyes. He is adventurous and kind-hearted. He can be a bit clumsy and easily scared. Billy wants to find water and carries a gourd bottle for it. He also enjoys playing golf, drumming, and singing.
- Bonnie is Billy's wife. She is a loyal and caring member of the meerkat family. She has tan fur and light brown eyes.
- Junior is the son of Billy and Bonnie. He looks up to his father and wants to do things like him.
- Other meerkats often tease Junior about his father. But they are convinced by Billy's actions in the end.
Other animals
- Socrates is an African lion and Billy's best friend. He has a scar on his face. Socrates is a vegetarian. He wants to get revenge on the hunter who harmed his brother, Mambo.
- Angie is an elephant with blond hair tied in a ponytail.
- Giselle is a reticulated giraffe. She wears makeup and has blond bangs. She is Angie's best friend.
- Winston is an old male Galápagos tortoise. He has lived for more than 700 years. He is 12 years older than his wife, Winifred. He passes away before the movie's big ending.
- Winifred is an old female Galápagos tortoise. She is Winston's wife and is also over 700 years old. She also passes away before the movie's big ending.
- Charles is a rooster with a French accent. He used to be food on a cruise ship. Now he leads the other animals.
- Sushi is a polar bear. She has been hurt by the melting ice due to global warming.
- Toby is a red kangaroo with droopy ears. He has a pouch even though he is male. Toby loves to drink water.
- Ken is a hippie koala. He was saved by a man after a fire in the outback.
- Smiley is a Tasmanian devil. Toby the kangaroo becomes his friend. Smiley is not very smart and is clumsy. He also has bad gas. But he is caring, friendly, and loyal.
- Toto is a chimpanzee. He was used for experiments at the hotel.
- Biggie is a southern white rhinoceros with red hair. He fights Chino.
- Chino is a Cape buffalo who fights Biggie.
- Bob is an aardvark who makes sounds like an elephant.
- The Leopard is a black panther living in the canyon. He becomes a vegetarian after seeing Charles's brave actions.
- Bongo is a maroon leaf monkey. He works as a hairdresser for other animals.
Humans
- Mr. Smith is the hotel manager. At first, he only cares about making money. He doesn't care about the animals. His hotel goes out of business when the animals get their water back.
- Maya Smith is Mr. Smith's daughter. She is kind and loves animals.
- Hunter is a selfish and mean animal hunter. He had hurt Socrates' brother Mambo before. The animals defeat him near the end of the movie.
Voice cast
German
- Ralf Schmitz as Billy the Meerkat
- Thomas Fritsch as Socrates the Lion
- Bastian Pastewka as Angie the Elephant
- Christoph Maria Herbst as Charles the Rooster
- Oliver Kalkofe as Mr. Smith
English dub
- James Corden as Billy the Meerkat
- Stephen Fry as Socrates the Lion
- Dawn French as Angie the Elephant
- Joanna Lumley as Giselle the Giraffe
- Jim Broadbent as Winston the Tortoise
- Vanessa Redgrave as Winifred the Tortoise
- Andy Serkis as Charles the Cockerel
- Jason Donovan as Toby the Kangaroo
- Omid Djalili as Bongo the Monkey
- Jason Griffith as Toto the Chimpanzee
- Sean Schemmel as Biggie the Rhinoceros
- Marc Thompson as Chino the Buffalo
- Oliver Wyman as Smiley the Tasmanian Devil
- Veronica Taylor as Maya Smith
See also
In Spanish: Animals United para niños
