A film adaptation of Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book The Twits has been promised for more than two decades. The Netflix animation plays to the strengths of the beloved classic, while adapting it to present times. Dark humour, many pranks, twists and turns ensure an enjoyable visual feast.
The film was written, directed and produced by the Oscar-nominated film-maker Phil Johnston, also known for his animated films Wreck-it Ralph (2012) and Zootopia (2016). The Twits is a fast-paced, whirlwind animation that speaks to audiences of all ages.
In this contemporary adaptation, the vindictive Mr and Mrs Twit (Johnny Vegas and Margo Martindale) are joint owners of the dilapidated amusement park Twitlandia. In a reinterpretation from the original plot, the park is now located in America, and its attractions include rides made out of toilets. The derelict rides are powered by the Muggle-Wumps – colourful monkey-like creatures that are held prisoner by the Twits.
The Twits spread their spite towards each other all over their hometown. When Twitlandia gets shut down by the police, they choose to take revenge on the city. Their evil scheming is uncovered by two unlikely heroes, orphans Beesha (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) and Bupsie (Ryan Anderson Lopez), who set out to unmask the Twits and free the Muggle-Wumps from their misery.
The trailer for The Twits.
The story leans on the original while reimagining it for global audiences, combining Dahl’s dark humour with a contemporary tale of public deceit. The Twits remain as intransigently nasty and detestable as in the original book, in keeping with Dahl’s fairytale juxtaposition of good versus evil.
Animation artistry
Some critics have taken issue with the Americanisation of the plot. But from an animation perspective, the film’s craftsmanship and collaborative 3D animation expertise still warrant recognition.
The environment design is complex and visually eclectic. The lighting design, meanwhile, is successfully atmospheric and supports the moody and dark twilight present throughout most of the story world.
Though it has been created through CGI, at first glance the film looks like a stop-motion production. The texture of the animation appears almost realistic if not quite painterly, with an aesthetic reminiscent of the 2014 stop-motion film, Box Trolls. The character designs make original use of what is known as shape language – the effective use of simple shapes in character design to communicate both personality and emotion to the viewer.
A fast-paced story like The Twits would be difficult to tell other than through CGI animation. Set pieces such as a city sinking in hot dog grease, a house being displaced by an angry mob and the magic of the Muggle-Wumps require a wealth of technical animation skills.
One of the Muggle-Wumps cheers up an orphan.
Courtesy of Netflix
The magic of animated feature films stems from a substantial team effort. And a successful animation team requires a supportive ecosystem to thrive. The talent list for this film includes more than 350 highly technically skilled artists across cinematography and layout, 3D modelling, art direction, 3D character design, rigging, 3D environment design, 3D lighting, sound, rendering and other fields.
The Twits was produced by the British animation company Jellyfish Pictures before its animation studio closed its doors forever earlier this year. Against the backdrop of a volatile animation industry landscape, it remains important to ensure a favourable climate for animation companies in the UK through continued access to funding, tax breaks and support for skills development in animation practices.
The UK has a longstanding history in children’s animation from the Woodentops in the 1950s to the many iterations of Noddy’s adventures, to Aardman Animation’s many successes, most notably Wallace and Gromit. The UK remains a leading global centre for children’s animation. It is therefore no surprise that the UK was at the heart of the animation pipeline for The Twits.
Animation UK estimates the UK Animation industry’s value at £1.7 billion, with a workforce of 16,000 and over 800 animation production companies. While there are economic challenges, the sector continues to be fuelled by a diverse, highly skilled workforce in which 93% hold a degree. Regional centres such as the University of Greenwich or the National Centre for Computer Animation provide animation degrees across 2D and 3D animation, in support of a talent pool for animated features such as The Twits.
As an international co-production, The Twits points to the fast-paced changes and challenges the animation industry is experiencing globally. But despite such economic headwinds, The Twits is a case in point for just what a labour of love an animated feature film is.
Looking for something good? Cut through the noise with a carefully curated selection of the latest releases, live events and exhibitions, straight to your inbox every fortnight, on Fridays. Sign up here.