Louis & Luca and the Snow Machine | Scandinavian stop-motion animation

There’s something of the handmade quirkiness of Wallace and Gromit about Louis & Luca and the Snow Machine, a slice of Scandinavian stop-motion animation based on the eccentric characters and universe created by the late Norwegian author Kjell Aukrust. But cocky magpie Louis and his ultra-timid hedgehog friend Luca, the film’s title characters, have only a fraction of the charm of Nick Park’s beloved creations. Still, their mishaps and misadventures prove engaging enough on this outing, which finds the demented local newspaper editor (voiced by Hugh Bonneville) bringing calamity upon the village of Flåklypa after getting his hands on the snow machine created by inventor Alfie, the kindly chap who looks after Louis and Luca and clears up after their scrapes.

Certificate U. Runtime 77 mins. Director Rasmus A Sivertsen

Louis & Luca and the Snow Machine debuts on Sky Cinema Premiere on 2 December. Available on DVD from Universal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkb-r_Q3JSM

A film critic for over 25 years, Jason admits the job can occasionally be glamorous – sitting on a film festival jury in Portugal; hanging out with Baz Luhrmann at the Chateau Marmont; chatting with Sigourney Weaver about The Archers – but he mostly spends his time in darkened rooms watching films. He’s also written theatre and opera reviews, two guide books on Rome, and competed in a race for Yachting World, whose great wheeze it was to send a seasick film critic to write about his time on the ocean waves. But Jason is happiest on dry land with a classic screwball comedy or Hitchcock thriller.