The Star (2017)

A small but brave donkey and his animal friends become the unsung heroes of the first Christmas.

Director:

Timothy Reckart

Writers:

Carlos Kotkin (screenplay by), Simon Moore (story by)

Stars:

Steven Yeun, Keegan-Michael Key, Aidy Bryant

Nominated for 1 Golden Globe. Another 1 win & 5 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Steven Yeun	...	Bo (voice)
Keegan-Michael Key	...	Dave (voice)
Aidy Bryant	...	Ruth (voice)
Gina Rodriguez	...	Mary (voice)
Zachary Levi	...	Joseph (voice)
Christopher Plummer	...	Herod (voice)
Ving Rhames	...	Thaddeus (voice)
Gabriel Iglesias	...	Rufus (voice)
Kelly Clarkson	...	Leah (voice)
Anthony Anderson	...	Zach (voice)
Patricia Heaton	...	Edith (voice)
Kris Kristofferson	...	Old Donkey (voice)
Kristin Chenoweth	...	Abby (voice)
Mariah Carey	...	Rebecca (voice)
Oprah Winfrey	...	Deborah (voice)

Storyline

In Sony Pictures Animation's THE STAR, a small but brave donkey named Bo yearns for a life beyond his daily grind at the village mill. One day he finds the courage to break free, and finally goes on the adventure of his dreams. On his journey, he teams up with Ruth, a lovable sheep who has lost her flock and Dave, a dove with lofty aspirations. Along with three wisecracking camels and some eccentric stable animals, Bo and his new friends follow the Star and become accidental heroes in the greatest story ever told - the first Christmas.

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Plot Keywords:

king | bible story | talking animal | donkey | pregnant | 

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Taglines:

It Takes Many Tails to Tell the Greatest Story Ever

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family | Fantasy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some thematic elements

Did You Know?

Trivia

The first animated film from Sony Animation to not have Sony Pictures Imageworks do the animation. Instead Cinesite studios provided the imagery and animation which was a great departure from other Sony Animation films which has the animation and imagery provided by Sony Pictures Imageworks.

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Goofs

When at the watering hole, once Bo has successfully dumped the Hunter into the well, Mary is seen from the bust down carrying the water pot while the animals talk. Her belly is really big, much bigger than any other time. A few seconds later it cuts to the same visual again, and her belly size has shrunk.

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Quotes

Deborah: Where do we find a king in Bethlehem?
Cyrus: Well, if memory serves, a king is set apart from the Philippians with an oriental headdress.
Felix: Audible what?
Deborah: They wear hats!
[Someone wearing a hat walks by]
Felix: [shouts] They're coming for you, your majesty! Run for your life!
[Felix's words come off as camel sounds bellowing out to the man who runs off to uncanny valley as a result]
Felix: Run like the wind!
Deborah: Will you cut that out? We'll never find him tied up here. We have to go out and search.
Felix: That's it! I'm biting through the...
[...]

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Crazy Credits

Despite being distributed by Columbia Pictures, the Columbia Pictures logo does not appear until the end credits. The logo itself has the same background as the Affirm Films logo. However, the possible reason the Columbia Pictures and Affirm Films logos were cut was due to Columbia's big schedule. Same said for Hotel Transylvania 3: Summer Vacation (2018).

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Connections

Referenced in AniMat's Crazy Cartoon Cast: HBO Max is Awesome! BUT... (2019)

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Soundtracks

Mary, Did You Know?
Written by Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene
Produced by Ron Fair
Performed by Zara Larsson
Zara Larsson appears courtesy of Record Company TEN / Epic Records

User Reviews

Glorious kids movie

The Special Effects, Plot and Story are exceptional. The old world is indeed Mesmerizing. However the movie seems to have ended abruptly. Overall it is a true entertainment.

Details

Official Sites:

Official Site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 November 2017 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Lamb

Box Office

Budget:

$20,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,812,674, 19 November 2017

Gross USA:

$40,896,334

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$84,315,928

Company Credits

Production Co:

Affirm Films, Sony Pictures Animation, Walden Media

Technical Specs

Runtime:

86 min

Sound Mix:

DTS (DTS: X) Dolby Digital Dolby Atmos

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1