Animated features have become so formulized that the late-1950s style of “The Nut Job’’ is very welcome — at least until an animated version of South Korean pop star Psy turns up to perform “Gangnam Style’’ at the end.
This Canadian-Korean co-production exhibits a dazzling array of influences, from Warner Bros. cartoons to the “Ice Age’’ series — to even “Larceny Inc.’’ (1942), an Edward G. Robinson film based on a play by S.J. and Laura Perelman.
And then there’s a lead character, Surly, a scatterbrained and self-absorbed squirrel voiced by Will Arnett — who looks very much like Remy the rat of the vastly superior “Ratatouille.’’
When Surly’s antics end up immolating a tree containing nuts being stored for the winter, he is banished from Oakton’s (ironically named) Liberty Park by its leader, a raccoon imposingly voiced by Liam Neeson.
Surly accidentally stumbles on some crooks who have just purchased a nut shop in order to tunnel to a bank vault across the street (that’s the Perelman connection).
Our hero is interested only in keeping himself in nuts, but his friend Andie (the dreaded Katherine Heigl, always better heard than seen) hopes this is a way for Surly to make amends and earn his way back into the park.
The small-town setting of a half-century ago is beautifully animated by director Peter Lepenotis and his team, and there are some nicely staged old-school action sequences.
The slapstick involving Surly, his mole sidekick and the gang of crooks (Stephen Lang voices their leader) is often amusing, even if the characters aren’t as well developed as they should be.
The celebrity voice performers aren’t particularly well cast, either.
The exceptions are Brendan Fraser as Grayson, an egotistical squirrel who thinks of himself as a hero, and Maya Rudolph as a cowardly bulldog who serves as the negligent guard for the hapless crooks.
“The Nut Job’’ has an interesting anti-socialist subtext, with the seemingly benevolent raccoon revealing himself as a power-mad dictator. It’s the most political non-Pixar cartoon feature since the very left-leaning “The Ant Bully’’ eight years ago.
The 3-D effects are superfluous, so save yourself a few bucks.