Flushed Away facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Flushed Away
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	David Bowers Sam Fell
Produced by	Cecil Kramer David Sproxton Peter Lord
Screenplay by	Dick Clement Ian La Frenais Chris Lloyd Joe Keenan Will Davies
Story by	Sam Fell Peter Lord Dick Clement Ian La Frenais
Starring	Hugh Jackman Kate Winslet Jean Reno Bill Nighy Andy Serkis Shane Richie Ian McKellen
Music by	Harry Gregson-Williams
Editing by	Eric Dapkewicz John Venzon
Studio	DreamWorks Animation Aardman Animations
Distributed by	DreamWorks Animation Aardman Features Paramount Pictures
Release date(s)	3 November 2006 (2006-11-03) (United States) 1 December 2006 (2006-12-01) (United Kingdom)
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United Kingdom United States
Language	English
Budget	$149 million
Money made	$178 million

Flushed Away is a fun computer-animated adventure comedy film from 2006. It was directed by David Bowers and Sam Fell. The movie was made by DreamWorks Animation and Aardman Animations. This was the third and last film they worked on together.

Flushed Away was special because it was Aardman's first movie made completely with computer animation. Usually, they use stop motion, which is a different way of making animated films. The film features the voices of famous actors like Hugh Jackman, Kate Winslet, Andy Serkis, Bill Nighy, Ian McKellen, Shane Richie, and Jean Reno.

The story is about a pet rat named Roddy St. James. He gets flushed down the toilet and ends up in the sewers. There, he meets a tough scavenger rat named Rita. They team up to help Roddy get back home. But they also have to avoid a mean toad and his rat helpers who are causing trouble.

The movie came out in the United States on November 3, 2006, and in the United Kingdom on December 1, 2006. It received good reviews from critics. Flushed Away was nominated for several awards, including the BAFTA Award and the Critics' Choice Award for Best Animated Feature. It also won 5 Annie Awards, which are big awards for animation.

Plot Summary

Roddy's Unlucky Flush

Roddy St. James is a fancy pet rat who lives in a very nice apartment in Kensington, London. His owners are away on vacation. One day, a common sewer rat named Sid pops out of the sink. Sid decides to stay, especially because a big football game (the World Cup Final) is on TV.

Roddy tries to trick Sid into the toilet to get rid of him. But Sid is too smart! Instead, Sid throws Roddy into the toilet and flushes him away. Roddy tumbles down into the sewers.

Adventures in Ratropolis

Roddy finds himself in a busy city called Ratropolis. This city is built from all sorts of junk and looks a lot like London. There, he meets Rita Malone. She is a clever scavenger rat who drives her boat, the Jammy Dodger, through the drains.

Rita is annoyed by Roddy at first, but she lets him come along. Her enemy, a mean character called the Toad, sends his rat helpers, Spike and Whitey, after her. They want a special ruby that Rita took back from him. The Toad really dislikes all rodents. He plans to freeze Roddy and Rita using liquid nitrogen.

Escaping the Toad

Roddy and Rita manage to escape the Toad's trap. Rita takes a special electrical cable. This cable is important because it controls the floodgates in the sewer system.

Roddy soon discovers that the ruby Rita had is actually a fake. He accidentally breaks it. Rita gets very upset. She explains that her father worked very hard to get that ruby for her. Roddy feels bad and offers Rita a real ruby if she takes him back to his home in Kensington. Rita agrees.

They first visit Rita's family. While there, Roddy overhears something that makes him think Rita is going to sell him to the Toad. So, he changes his mind about the deal and steals the Jammy Dodger. When Rita catches up to him, she explains the misunderstanding.

The Toad's Big Plan

Roddy and Rita escape from Spike, Whitey, and their friends again. The Toad is very angry that his helpers keep failing. He calls for his French cousin, Le Frog, to help. We learn that the Toad used to be Prince Charles's favorite pet. But then he was replaced by a rat and flushed down the toilet. This is why he hates rodents so much!

Le Frog and his frog team try to get the cable from Roddy and Rita. But the duo manage to escape the sewer and get back to Roddy's house. Sadly, the Jammy Dodger boat is destroyed.

Saving Ratropolis

Roddy gives Rita the real ruby and an emerald, just as he promised. He shows her around his fancy house. Rita first thinks he has a family living there. But then she sees his cage and realizes he is a pet. Rita tries to convince Roddy to come with her. But Roddy is too proud to admit he is lonely.

Rita leaves, but the Toad soon captures her. Roddy talks to Sid and realizes the Toad's terrible plan. The Toad wants to open the floodgates during halftime of the World Cup. This is when many humans will be flushing their toilets. A huge wave of sewage would then flood Ratropolis. The Toad wants to use the empty city for his many tadpole children.

Roddy gives his home and comfy life to Sid. Then, he has Sid flush him back down the sewers. Roddy frees Rita, and together they stop the Toad and his helpers. They use liquid nitrogen to freeze the sewage wave.

At the end, Roddy joins Rita as the first mate on her new boat, the Jammy Dodger II. Le Frog and his frog friends are seen hitchhiking back to France. In a short scene after the credits, Roddy's human owner brings a new pet cat home. Sid, who was enjoying Roddy's luxurious life, is not happy about this!

Meet the Voices

The talented actors who lent their voices to the characters in Flushed Away are:

• Hugh Jackman as Roderick "Roddy" St. James: A pampered but lonely pet rat from a wealthy English family. He gets flushed into the sewers by Sid.
• Kate Winslet as Rita Malone: A street-smart and tough scavenger rat. She is the oldest child in a big family and the captain of The Jammy Dodger. She becomes Roddy's close friend.
• Ian McKellen as the Toad: A proud amphibian who wants to get rid of all the rats in Ratropolis. He plans to make room for his hundreds of baby tadpoles. Ian McKellen won an Annie Award for Voice Acting in a Feature Production for his amazing voice work!
• Jean Reno as Le Frog: The Toad's French cousin. He is a master of martial arts and leads a team of frog helpers.
• Andy Serkis as Spike: One of the Toad's two main rat helpers. He is quick-witted and more aggressive.
• Bill Nighy as Whitey: The other main rat helper for the Toad. Whitey is an albino rat and Spike's partner. He is more kind and less mean than Spike, but also a bit easily fooled.
• Shane Richie as Sid: An overweight and lazy rat from the sewers. He knows Rita and her family. He is the one who accidentally flushes Roddy down the toilet.
• Kathy Burke and David Suchet as Mr. and Mrs. Malone: Rita's parents.
• Miriam Margolyes as Rita's grandmother: She has a funny crush on Roddy, thinking he is the singer Tom Jones.
• Rachel Rawlinson as Tabitha: Roddy's human owner.
• Christopher Fairbank as Thimblenose Ted: Another one of the Toad's henchmen. Christopher Fairbank also voiced a cockroach in the Malone family's home.

The Soundtrack

The music from Flushed Away was released on Halloween (October 31), 2006. The soundtrack features a mix of songs by different artists and music from the film's score.

The Video Game

A video game based on the Flushed Away movie was released at the same time as the film. You could play it on PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, Game Boy Advance, and Nintendo DS. Even though some critics didn't love the game, it still won an Annie Award for best animated video game!

See also

In Spanish: Flushed Away para niños