Review Format:

Blu-ray

‘Hop’ tells the story of Fred O’Hare (James Marsden) – who would one day become the first human Easter bunny. As a child, Fred was surprised to witness the Easter Bunny (voiced by Hugh Laurie) turn up in his garden at night to leave lots of foil-covered chocolaty goodness, Santa style. Fast forward twenty years and Fred is unemployed and still living at home, much to the disappointment of his parents who arrange an intervention.

On the day of the coronation of the Easter Bunny’s son E.B (Russell Brand), he confesses that he’d rather become a drummer in a band than follow in his dad’s lucky rabbit footprints. He flees from Easter Island and makes his way to Hollywood. Of course, it isn’t long before he crosses paths with Fred (and his car) and the fun begins.

One standout scene involves E.B’s audition on David Hasselhoff’s ‘Hoffs Got Talent’ show, which includes an amusing nod for older viewers. Also worth a mention is a Machiavellian chick (Hank Azaria) with a Mexican accent and his sights on the role of Easter Bunny. By the end of the movie, there is a good chance that you will know all of the words to the song ‘I want candy’, and you will probably be sharing that sentiment too.

With lollypop trees and jellybean waterfalls, E.B’s colourful home on Easter Island is clearly inspired by Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Comparisons can’t also help but be drawn to ‘Alvin and the Chipmonks’, which of course features pint-sized musicians (and the same Director). What sets ‘Hop’ apart though is Russell Brand’s humour and trademark rock star persona.

Combining live action with cute CG bunnies, ‘Hop’ is an enjoyable comedy for kids of all ages. While treading through very familiar ground, it does so in such a charming way that you won’t mind.

EXTRAS:

The Extras on the disc are a bit sparse to say the least. The main attraction ‘The World of Hop’ is essentially a bite-size featurette, split into several shorter chapters focusing on the characters. Annoyingly these don’t include an obvious ‘Play All’ option. Also included is ‘All Access with Cody Simpson’, who takes us briefly behind the scenes of the premiere at Universal Studios. Finally, there is ‘Emotion in Motion: The Dance of Ken Daurio’ – a silly video with one of the film’s writers. Neither of the latter two options includes any of the main vocal talent in the film.