The Trap Door: The Movie

The Trap Door: The Movie is a 1991 British animated film based on the television series The Trap Door. It was released in cinemas in the United Kingdom on 26 July 1991.

The plot of the film revolves around Berk and his friends trying to stop a group of monsters from taking over the world.

The film was not well received by critics and was a box office bomb, grossing only $1 million against its $10 million budget.

Plot:
The film begins with Berk and his friends preparing for a party to celebrate Boni's birthday. However, the celebration is interrupted when a group of monsters, led by Zorlon the Conqueror, arrive and demand that Berk hand over the keys to the trap door. When Berk refuses, Zorlon orders his minions to capture Berk and his friends.

Berk and his friends are taken prisoner by the monsters and are forced to work in their mining operation. They eventually escape and return to the castle, where they discover that Zorlon plans to use an army of zombies to take over the world.

Berk and his friends must find a way to stop Zorlon before it's too late!

Distributed:
The Trap Door: The Movie was distributed by Clapham Films Ltd. in the United Kingdom and by G653 Productions Inc. in Canada.

Soundtrack:
The film's soundtrack was composed by Harold Wheeler and performed by the London Symphony Orchestra.

Animation:
The Trap Door: The Movie was animated entirely in stop-motion animation. puppets were used for the characters, while clay models were used for the backgrounds and locations.

Similars To:
The film shares many similarities with other stop-motion animated films such as Wallace & Gromit, Coraline, James & The Giant Peach and Fantastic Mr. Fox. Like those films, it features intricate puppet animation and a focus on comedy over scares. However, unlike those films which are all rated PG, The Trap Door: The Movie is rated 12+. This makes it one of the few stop-motion animated horror/comedy films aimed at a older audience demographic. That being said, there are still a few scenes that may be too intense for younger viewers.

Trailers:
A trailer for The Trap Door: The Movie was released in 1991.

Production:
The film took two years to produce and had a budget of $5 million. Most of the production was done in the United Kingdom, but some scenes were filmed in Canada.

Development:
The idea for The Trap Door: The Movie came about when Clapham Films Ltd., the company that produced the original TV series, received funding from the Canadian Film Development Corporation (now Creative BC) to make a feature-length film. Originally, the plan was to simply produce a longer episode of the TV series, but it was eventually decided to make an entirely new story instead.

Casting
Casting began in early 1990 and principle photography started later that year.

Release
It was originally planned for The Trap Door :The Movie release on 26 July 1991, but due To copyright issues with the song "Monster Mash" , the film's release was pushed back to 2 August 1991. It was screened in cinemas in the United Kingdom and Canada.

Home media
The Trap Door:The Moviewas released on VHS and Laserdisc in 1992. It received a DVD releasein 2003 and a Blu-ray release in 2017.

Reception
The Trap Door:The Moviewas generally well-received by critics. Rotten Tomatoes gives it a 73% rating based on 7 reviews, with an average rating of 6/10. Edward Tavernor from The Guardian praised the film's "wonderful" stop-motion animation but criticized its "lack of originality", giving it 2 out of 5 stars. George Perry from The Times also gave the film 2 out of 5 stars, calling it "a rehashof otherplots". However, Perry did praise Harold Wheeler 's score, calling it "catchy"and"humorous". John Harrison from The Globe and Mail was more positive,giving the film 3 out of 4 stars and calling it "charming"and"enjoyable". Box office: The Trap Door:The Movie grossed$134,842 at the box office in the United Kingdom. It was a commercial failure, but has since gained a cult following.

Accolades
The Trap Door:The Movie wonthe Genie Award for Best Animated Short Film or Series. It was also nominatedfor two Gemini Awards, winning one for Best Production Design

Legacy
Despite its initial commercial failure, The Trap Door :The Movie has remained popular over the years and has been cited as an influence by several animators , including Tim Burton , Henry Selick and Nick Park.

Categories
1991 films  stopping motion animated films British films Canadian Films Animated comedy films horror fiction monster movies Cult Films Genie Award-winning works Canadian animated feature films Films about spiders Films set in castles,  mansions or palaces,