TROLLS
Directors: Walt Dohrn and Mike Mitchell
Cast: Anna Kendrick, Justin Timberlake, Gwen Stefani, Zooey Deschanel, John Cleese, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Russell Brand, James Corden, Christine Baranski and Jeffrey Tambor
Rating: (G)
Four stars (out of five)
When watching Trolls (Rialto and Readings), it is clear that the people responsible for the production design have spent their youth attending raves: the trolls in this universe like nothing better than singing, dancing and hugging, and apparently there is never an inappropriate moment for a glitter bomb.
The trolls were so over-the-top happy that they caught the attention of the bergens, who do not understand singing, dancing and hugging but like nothing more than eating trolls.The bergens might be miserable but they have self-control, so instead of going on an orgy of troll eating, they set aside a special day — Trollstice — and sustainably harvest the trolls.
Eventually the Trolls work out that you can not stay happy when a regular percentage of your population is wiped out each year and they escape.
Fast-forward 20 years and Princess Poppy (Anna Kendrick) organises a party to celebrate their great escape. Branch (Justin Timberlake), the one gloomy troll, tries to talk her out of it but she ignores him and holds the party anyway.
Of course, Branch is right and the party-goers are caught and taken off to be eaten by the bergens, leaving Poppy and Branch to work together to rescue her friends.
Silly and frequently freaky, Trolls is surprisingly easy to watch; under-sevens will be mesmerised.
