Over the Hedge (2006)
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A desperate raccoon must convince a group of woodland animals to help him steal food from a nearby housing development to satisfy a debt to a bear.
The story
After a raccoon named RJ accidentally destroys a bear's food supply, he is forced to replace it within a week or face the bear's wrath. To accomplish this, RJ manipulates a group of woodland animals—led by a cautious turtle named Verne—into venturing beyond their home to steal food from a nearby human housing development. The animals are unaware of RJ's true motives, and the group must navigate the dangers of the human world, including a determined neighborhood association and a menacing exterminator, to secure enough food to satisfy the bear's demands.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
RJ, a raccoon, destroys a bear named Vincent's food and promises to replace it in a week. He convinces a group of woodland animals, led by Verne the turtle, to help him steal food from a nearby housing development. During their first attempt, they are chased by a dog and the food is destroyed, leading to Verne being blamed. Later, RJ discovers an exterminator, Dwayne, is setting traps in the neighborhood. RJ convinces the animals to raid a homeowner's house, where they successfully gather a large amount of food. However, RJ's greed for a specific snack causes him to flee alone, leading to the other animals being captured by Dwayne. After a confrontation with the bear, RJ has a change of heart and rescues the animals from Dwayne's van. The group eventually crashes into the homeowner's house, and a chaotic chase ensues. Ultimately, a high-tech device called the Depelter Turbo is triggered, sending the bear and the humans away. RJ joins the animals permanently, and the group finds a new way to sustain themselves.
- First release year
- 2006
- Runtime (minutes)
- 83
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- Tim Johnson; Karey Kirkpatrick
- Writers
- Len Blum · writer; Lorne Cameron · writer; David Hoselton · writer; Karey Kirkpatrick · writer
- Cast and characters
- Bruce Willis · RJ; Garry Shandling · Verne; Steve Carell · Hammy; Wanda Sykes · Stella; William Shatner · Vincent; Nick Nolte · Vincent
- Genres
- animated; comedy
- Themes
- consumerism; environmentalism; friendship
- Tone and mood
- humorous; charming
- Premise and plot tags
- animal adventure; satire
- Source material / true-story basis
- Over the Hedge comic strip
- Franchise connections
- Over the Hedge
- Reception
- The film received generally positive reviews from critics for its humor, charm, and animation, and was a commercial success.
- Reported review scores
- Rotten Tomatoes · score: 6.80 · scale: 10 · review count: 172; Metacritic · score: 67 · scale: 100 · review count: 31
- Production trivia
- The character of the owl, Norbert, was scrapped after Gene Wilder turned down the role.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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