Aside from being visually fascinating, this is one of the greatest movies I have ever seen.
Mr. Fox (voiced by Clooney) lives in the base of a tree with his wife (Meryl Streep) and 12 -year-old son (2.5 in human years). After years of enjoying a dangerous career of stealing birds from nearby farms, Mr. Fox promises that he will find a safer line of work for the sake of his family. However, his addiction to risk and a positive self-image persuade him to tackle one last bird heist: stealing chickens, geese, and turkeys from three malicious farmers ("Boggis, Bunce, and Bean/One fat, one short, one lean/These horrible crooks/So different in looks/Are nonetheless equally mean"). He yearns for his friends and neighbors to be constantly impressed with him, and feels tremendous self pity if he fails to keep up the image. His egocentrism- the inability to put himself in other people's shoes; namely his wife's- exposes his family to danger, although he cares for them dearly.
The adolescent fox son, Ash (Jason Schwartzman), is an eccentric loner who longs to be a great athlete, though he is far from. He is often overlooked by his father (a star athlete in his day), and as a result has low self-esteem and is constantly irritable. His inferiority complex is enhanced by the arrival of his cousin, who is the same age but possesses all the qualities that Ash lacks to impress Mr. Fox. Cousin Kristofferson (Eric Anderson) is mild mannered, polite, an excellent athlete, and has a more likable personality.Ash is infuriated that his cousin is constantly praised, while he himself remains ignored. After Kristofferson impresses the school coach with his talent for playing "whack-bat" (a local sport similar to baseball, but with incredibly complex rules), Ash becomes more sullen and dejected.
A strong theme in the film is the fear or acceptance of being "different." Each character feels out of place in some way or another, and struggle to embrace the traits that separate them from the rest of the pack. My favorite incident, chronicled briefly in the video below, shows Kristofferson and his lab partner discussing Ash. The bullying beaver's hand motion that signifies the search for the right word is very familiar.
Mr. Fox's bird heist lands the entire animal community in hot water when he is discovered by the farmers, who spare no expense and effort in trying to find and kill him. In the midst of the crisis, his priorities finally become clear to him, and he uses this perspective to plan a successful counter-attack on Boggis, Bunce, and Bean.
The contrast between father and son was the most striking element for me. Mr. Fox wishes no ill-will to Ash, but is too caught up in his master plan to maintain his reputation to realize he is hurting his son with neglect. Ash rarely confronts his father with his true feelings, but holds resentment for Mr. Fox's self-absorbed distraction and praise of cousin Kristofferson. Ash acts eccentrically in an attempt to gain his father's attention, but to no avail. They possess different types of self-esteem issues, and express them in such ways that neither can have sympathy for the other. Eventually, the walls have to come down. They both long for the same things: acceptance and praise from others and themselves.
