Valiant (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Valiant |
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North American theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Gary Chapman |
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| Screenplay by |
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| Story by | George Webster |
| Starring | |
| Music by | George Fenton |
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| Release date(s) | March 25, 2005 (UK) August 19, 2005 (US) |
| Running time | 76 minutes |
| Country | United Kingdom United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $35 million |
| Money made | $61.7 million |
Valiant is a 2005 computer-animated epic adventure comedy film produced by Vanguard Animation, Ealing Studios and Odyssey Entertainment, and released by Entertainment Film Distributors in the United Kingdom on March 25, 2005 and by Walt Disney Pictures in the United States on August 19, 2005. Set in May of the year 1944, it tells the story of a group of war pigeons during World War II. The film is based on a story by George Webster, and inspired by true stories of hundreds of pigeons that helped the soldiers in the war.
Contents
Plot
In May 1944, 5 years after the declaration of World War II, three Royal Homing Pigeon Service war pigeons are flying across the English Channel with the White Cliffs of Dover in sight, carrying vital messages to Great Britain. Despite the poor weather conditions the pigeons have nearly reached their destination. They are, however, suddenly ambushed and attacked by a Nazi German enemy peregrine falcon named General Von Talon (Tim Curry); two of the pigeons are instantly killed, yet the third, Mercury (John Cleese), is taken as a prisoner of war.
Elsewhere, a small wood pigeon named Valiant (Ewan McGregor) is watching an Allied forces propaganda film in his local bar (an overturned rowing boat) in West Nestington. He is best friends with Felix (John Hurt), an old seagull with a peg leg and the local barman. Wing Commander Gutsy (Hugh Laurie), a war hero, flies into the bar, informing everyone that signups are scheduled the next day in Trafalgar Square, London. Valiant flies off to London, bidding his mother and Felix goodbye. In London, Valiant meets an unhygienic slacker pigeon named Bugsy (Ricky Gervais), who is being hunted by two magpie thugs, after having tricked them at a shell game. In order to escape the thugs, he signs up with Valiant.
The recruits, Valiant, Bugsy, Lofty (Pip Torrens), an intellectual red pigeon, and Toughwood and Tailfeather (Dan Roberts and Brian Lonsdale), two muscular but dim-witted twin brothers, form Royal Homing Pigeon Service Squad F, and are sent to a recruit training facility. Under the command of Sergeant Monty (Jim Broadbent), who declares that he will toughen them up for the RHPS, the training begins. Meanwhile, Von Talon and his henchmen, Cufflingk (Rik Mayall) and Underlingk (Michael Schlingmann), try numerous attempts to discover the message's departure location. However Mercury refuses to tell, despite the tortures inflicted upon him, such as irritating him with yodeling music and injecting him with truth serum, before Mercury accidentally reveals the location: Saint-Pierre.
Valiant develops a crush on Victoria (Olivia Williams), the camp's nursing dove. Eventually, Gutsy arrives and tells the Sergeant that the recruits need to leave the next morning, despite their training being vastly incomplete. Bugsy, however, decides not to go on the "highly dangerous" mission and flees the camp that night. The next morning, Valiant and the others prepare to leave and start to board a Handley Page Halifax bound for occupied France, but not before Bugsy shows up at the last second. The journey quickly becomes dangerous, as the plane is caught in an anti-aircraft attack. Their plane sustains heavy damage and the pigeons soon have to bail out, in boxes equipped with parachutes. The pigeons are dropped from the plane; however a technical malfunction causes Gutsy's box to fail to deploy. The plane crash-lands nearby, but then explodes, presumably killing Gutsy.
In France, the pigeons meet Charles de Girl (Sharon Horgan) and Rollo (Buckley Collum), two mice from the French Resistance, Mouse Division, who lead them to Saint-Pierre, where they receive the message they have been ordered to deliver. They soon come under attack by Von Talon's henchmen, resulting in Bugsy and the message being captured. Von Talon takes the message from Bugsy and decides to lock him up and kill him later, planning to personally deliver the message to Der Fuehrer himself. Valiant and the troops follow Bugsy to the falcon's bunker, where they discover that Gutsy has survived the plane crash. Valiant takes advantage of his small size and sneaks into the bunker through the gun barrel, retrieves the message, and frees Bugsy and Mercury. Unfortunately, the falcons witness the escape and give chase. As Gutsy, Bugsy, Mercury, Toughwood, Tailfeather and Lofty fight off Cufflingk and Underlingk, Valiant flies to London to deliver the message, followed by Von Talon.
After a climactic chase, Valiant hides until he is caught by Von Talon. With the help of Felix and the resident pigeons, Valiant outwits Von Talon by getting a giant hook caught on his medals, leaving him to be beaten by the water wheel. Valiant delivers the message, and upon its arrival in the war room, a change of plans is made; the Allied fleet will land in Normandy. After receiving the Dickin Medal, Squad F returns to the local bar in West Nestington, where Valiant reunites and shares a romantic kiss with Victoria. A message is then displayed commending the animals that saved thousands of lives during World War 2.
Voice cast
- Ewan McGregor as Valiant
- Ricky Gervais as Bugsy
- Pip Torrens as Lofty Thaddeus Worthington
- Dan Roberts as Tailfeather
- Brian Lonsdale as Toughwood
- John Cleese as Mercury
- Olivia Williams as Victoria
- John Hurt as Felix
- Annette Badland as Elsa
- Jim Broadbent as Sergeant Monty
- Hugh Laurie as Wing Commander Gutsy
- Tim Curry as General Von Talon
- Rik Mayall as Cufflingk
- Michael Schlingmann as Underlingk
- Sharon Horgan as Charles de Girl
- Buckley Collum as Rollo
- Sean Samuels as Jacques
- Jonathan Ross as Big Thug
- Mike Harbour as Little Thug
Soundtrack
The musical score was composed by George Fenton and mostly performed by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The orchestral music is in keeping with the military theme of the film, such as through "March of the R.H.P.S.", performed by The Central Band of the Royal Air Force. Tracks were recorded at AIR Recording Studios and at Angel Recording Studios in London and at Right Track Studios, New York. The only track not composed by Fenton is "Shoo Shoo Baby", performed by R&B girl group Mis-Teeq; originally sung by the popular American wartime group, the Andrews Sisters. Although "Shoo Shoo Baby" was the only track on the album containing lyrics, it was not the only lyrical track used in the film - "Non, je ne regrette rien" by Édith Piaf is played in one scene in the film, despite it being recorded in 1960, 16 years after 1944, when the film was set.
See also
In Spanish: Valiant (película) para niños
