If you believe that a Wolf would always remain a villain, think again. The recently released The Bad Guys has something different in store for the audience but even in that film, the Wolf begins as the ‘bad guy’ until he tastes ‘goodness’ for the first time. The comedy heist animated film is for all ages, where The Big Bad Wolf of the past turns over a ‘good’ leaf.

The Bad Guys is a film adaptation of Aaron Blabey’s Australian graphic novel series, that takes place in a world where humans and anthropomorphic animals co-exist. In that world, an infamous gang, comprising the worst animals one could wish for, continues to work their way up, but on the other side of the law, before their success is met with failure.

That one failure is enough to make them realise that they might not stay around for long, and that’s why they plan one last heist before quitting for good. Their plan is to become the good guys to fool the public, and then strike when no one suspects them. Do they succeed in their plan or do they fail, watch the film to find out.

The best thing about The Bad Guys is the choice of animals for the characters.

The cool-headed Mr Wolf is naturally the charismatic leader, Mr Snake is the ‘safe cracker’, Ms Tarantula is and world-class hacker, Mr Shark is a master of disguise and the short-tempered Mr Piranha is the ‘muscle-man’.

How Professor Marmalade, a philanthropic guinea pig, and Governor Diane Foxington feature in the story is interesting as is the script, the witty humour, and the tongue-in-cheek dialogues.

From Mr Piranha’s crazy moments to Mr Shark’s disguises and Mr Wolf’s discussion with the audience, the kids present in the cinema loved everything the Bad Guys did.

Directed by Pierre Perifel, the movie features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Awkwafina, and Zazie Beetz to name a few.

The animated film has a message that even bad guys can change, and one must never judge people by their appearances. Some jokes might seem odd to the adults accompanying the kids, but for them there are car chases, the explosions and the twists. The rest is there for the young minds who would cherish the 100-minute movie and learn a couple of things about friendship they didn’t know.

Published in Dawn, Young World, June 11th, 2022