To me, A Town Called Panic was something like witnessing the off-kilter, nightmare world of a hyperactive child who was clearly overdosing on a massive sugar-rush. And in this hellish state the delirious child was plunged headlong into a claustrophobic nether-land of plastic-toy figurines. (Believe me, as an onlooker, this was not a pleasant vision to behold) Unlike Pixar's 'Toy Story', where toys were generally treated with a certain amount of regard and respect, this 'toy story' seemed to me to be hellbent on showing endless ways of damaging and, yes, destroying children's playthings.This truly bizarre and quirky stop-motion picture left me with too many unanswered questions, such as - Why did these plastic figurines need to sleep? Why did Indian want to build a barbecue for Horse? (I thought that all of these figurines (men & animals, alike) were on equal terms with each other and the act of eating one another was unthinkable) With 5 million bricks at their disposal, why did Cowboy make such a ridiculous fuss and go to so much trouble to get their walls back? Anyways - I certainly can't argue that some of the stop-motion animation was actually quite imaginative and amusing. But, before long, "Panic" inevitably lost its initial novelty and appeal. This was mainly due to the sheer nuttiness of a disjointed story which carried its situations too far to the extreme. (This picture could have also stood for a 20-minute haircut) I guess, when it comes right down to it, there just doesn't seem to be enough of a child's wonder and awe still left inside of me, so I was not able to find any real enjoyment in "Panic" as, it seems, so many others have.

In a strange rural town, three plastic toys, Cowboy, Indian and Horse, share a house. Cowboy and Indian awake one morning to realise they have forgotten Horse's birthday. They decide to build him a barbecue, and order the bricks to build it on the internet. The delivery goes wrong, and they accidentally order about 5 million bricks, which they hide from Horse on top of their house. The weight of the bricks eventually sink the house into the ground, and they are forced to rebuild. But a gang of strange creatures who live underwater keep stealing the walls they build, so the trio embark on an adventure to take back their bricks, and get Horse to his piano lessons.Sound mad? Well it is. My description of the plot does not do the insanity and the randomness of this film justice. If there is one word to describe the film, it would be manic. When the credits rolled, I've never been so physically and mentally exhausted after watching a film since the mind-raping that was Tetsuo: The Iron Man (thank you for that, Marc). Made from the same people who did the fantastic Cravendale milk adverts, A Town Called Panic feels like the kind of the thing that goes through your mind when playing with your toys as a kid. It drifts from one random scene to the next.I think if I ever watched Toy Story while cained on acid, I think my mind would probably filter it through as this. It defies logic and avoids anything remotely resembling moral lessons, which makes the whole thing infinitely more fun. It's refreshing knowing that this is nothing more than childish playfulness mixed with some genuinely hilarious lines and set-pieces. How does putting a broken TV on his head allow Cowboy to breathe underwater? How do you move 5 million bricks on top of a roof in a few minutes? How does a horse type? Who gives a s**t? The creators are having far too much fun to allow meaningless things like logic to get in the way.This is truly a one in a million film, made from creative minds of such fierce individualism, with some truly beautiful animation. My favourite moment would have to be the character of Steven (voiced by Man Bites Dog's serial killer Benoit Poelvoorde) who is served a giant slice of bread covered in chocolate spread and a mug of coffee that's bigger than him. He storms into the room, ever shouting, to bounce along the table on his head munching the bread at hyper-speed, and walk straight through the coffee mug shouting "great coffee!" as he leaves. Absolute genius.www.the-wrath-of-blog.blogspot.com

When I first heard this film reviewed I thought 'I have to watch that' as I didn't think anything could be quite as insane as the reviewer made it sound… I was wrong; if anything he downplayed just how stark raving bonkers this film is! The animation may be very basic when compared with animation coming out of Japan and Hollywood but that is part of the charm; the characters are just toys and the film looks like they were being played with by children with a very vivid imagination. The story follows the adventures of Cowboy, Indian and Horse; it all starts when Cowboy and Indian order fifty bricks to make Horse a barbecue for his birthday but accidentally order rather to many bricks; fifty million to be precise. The huge pile of bricks causes the house to collapse and every time they try to rebuild their work is stolen be strange goblin like creatures. As the three chase after them they find themselves in strange locations such as the centre of the Earth, one of the poles and under the sea before they eventually get home.This film really is a lot of fun; as mentioned before the story is completely insane and the characters are equally bizarre. I was hooked from start to finish and frequently laughed despite the subtitles being rather hard to read on the television. If this film had been suggested to a Hollywood producer I'm sure that who ever had the idea would be told to lay off the hallucinogenic drugs but thankfully in Belgium the film got made. If you are a fan of animation or surreal films it is a must see; I'm sure children would enjoy it too if they don't mind reading the subtitles or are good at French.

A Town Called Panic is simply brilliant! It is very simple, and the film consists of Indian, Cowboy, and Horse's misadventures, but the screenplay is clever and very funny. The biggest worry one has when watching a film like this is that maybe after a while the animation style or loose story- telling technique may get one overwhelmed, I know that was my biggest worry. But There was no need! This film was entertaining from the first second to the last, and it is a very energetic film that never once stops. It the equivalent of a child bouncing up and down because he is on a sugar high. If you expect a theme or very story oriented animated film, look elsewhere. This film is all about the one-liners and the wacky situations, but it was still really amazing for a film like this to be this entertaining. Brilliantly well done, and I think it is better than two other similar animated films, Coraline and Fantastic Mr. Fox.