Romantic comedy is parodied wonderfully in this film. The typical love-at-first-sight between Wallace and Wendolene is so stereotypical: the lingering facial shots, the accidental hand touching, dovetailing with the slapstick of Gromit and Preston in the background and the physical barriers between them is romantic comedy at its paramount. Most should identify that the relationship is ill-fated from the start- principally when their first meeting finishes abruptly once Wallace mentions the sheep rustling. Another aspect of this film type is when Wallace and Wendolene are cruelly dragged apart whilst Wallace is feebly trying to tell her his feelings, ironically by sheep- one of the reasons they can’t be together in the first place.
The mad inventor theme is used throughout. I find it rather ironic, Wallace is a complete idiot yet he manages to make all these ridiculous, useless creations. He seems to have a desire to rely utterly unnecessarily on them, for instance in the Thunderbirds spoof: his chair lifts up through the ceiling, he slides down some chutes, is furnished with his sponge and bucket and is finally placed on his motorcycle whilst Gromit austerely walks through the door and steps into his sidecar. Personally, I think Wallace is just lethargic. I mean, he even has a boot to start the engine. Gromit, a dog who, paradoxically, is smarter than his human, seems indifferent when Wallace’s machines malfunction. Obviously he is so used to it happening he even delays helping him; this gives the impression that the loveable Gromit is the one who always has to save the day and, rather frankly, finds Wallace’s antics irksome. We all pity Gromit, trapped with Wallace, but we could never tolerate this magnificent duo breaking up.
Dramatic irony is used to show Wallace’s stupidity and Gromit’s weary brilliance. When a lost sheep enters their home it’s Gromit who picks up the subliminally brightly coloured clues, despite the fact the one who is in the most palpable locations to solve the mystery is Wallace: for example he uses the somewhat greatly named Shaun as a footstool but he still doesn’t realise and blames Gromit for the chaotic state of the house: “Have you been peckish in the night… Only someone’s been at me cheese”, even though it is blatantly obviously that he’s innocent. Even when he tries to make Gromit feel better he fails, worsening the situation. It’s a good thing that Gromit’s detached from Wallace’s loopy life; otherwise this film would lose some of its sparkle and the plot would just fall apart.
Verbal humour is used throughout the film, something that is there more for the adults. The newspapers are a fantastic way of narrating the story plus it’s also an opportunity for the creative directors to play around; they add farcical newspaper titles such as the Daily Lamppost. Children aren’t very likely to notice this and may not even read the headlines but anyone paying close enough attention to notice will enjoy the pure wit of the creators. It’s the sheer attention to detail that makes this film so darn appealing to me; they even have Feathers McGraw as the logo for the penguin brand on Crime and Punishment by “Fido Dogstoyevsky”, a wonderful doggy pun on the much-acclaimed Fyodor Dostoyevsky.
The chase sequence is reminiscent of a salmagundi of films. For instance James Bond when Gromit is plunging down a precipice and his side-car inexplicably transforms into an aeroplane or The Terminator; Arnold Schwarzenegger elucidates that their vehicle "has reached its maximum speed" as a truck approaches from behind whereas the truck closes in on Wallace's motorbike Wallace vociferates "We're going at maximum speed”. Furthermore Gromit’s porridge-gun lampoons WWII air-battle films as I’m sure they don’t utilize porridge as their prime ammunition.
A Close Shave is whimsical yet realistic, facetious yet wistful and that is precisely why I love it so much! The way we suspend our disbelief, the way the genres shift and the constant use of cinematic clichés allows adults too to truly enjoy this film as children do. The minor sub-plots, albeit uninteresting for kids, help the adults feel catered for whilst the children enjoy the bright, visual effects and titter at the slapstick sights. This conscientious balance is precisely what makes this film so brilliant. That, and the fact then Wendolene can’t stand cheese- not even wendsleydale.
