Early Man

Play trailer

1:00

Early Man

PG

2018

1h 29m

Kids & Family

Comedy

Adventure

Animation

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

80%

Tomatometer

173 Reviews

49%

Popcornmeter

1,000+ Ratings

A plucky cave man named Dug, his sidekick Hognob and the rest of their tribe face a grave threat to their simple existence. Lord Nooth plans to take over their land and transform it into a giant mine, forcing Dug and his clan to dig for precious metals. Not ready to go down without a fight, Dug and Hognob must unite their people in an epic quest to defeat a mighty enemy -- the Bronze Age.

Watch on Fandango

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Early Man isn't quite as evolved as Aardman's best work, but still retains the unique visuals and sweet humor that have made the studio a favorite among animation enthusiasts.

Read Critics Reviews

David Stratton

The Australian

03/30/2018

3/5

A generally wholesome and entertaining confection. The animation is state-of-the-art, but the simple plot mechanics and often rather tired jokes could have benefited from some rewriting.

Go to Full Review

Paul Byrnes

Sydney Morning Herald

03/28/2018

4/5

Aardman has always done this layering of humour, so that adults can enjoy their stories as much as children, but this one pushes the volume up to 11. The glee runneth over from the first shot.

Go to Full Review

Ben Sachs

Chicago Reader

02/22/2018

The story is thin, allowing little room for imaginative engagement, and the comedy uninspired. Early Man contains a nice anti-sexism message, but delivers it half-heartedly.

Go to Full Review

Jason Best

Movie Talk

May 26

Eddie Redmayne’s hero Dug and his chums can’t match Wallace and Gromit for eccentric charm, but the silly visual gags and groan-inducing puns (‘Jurassic Pork’) still come thick and fast.

Go to Full Review

Brian Eggert

Deep Focus Review

03/14/2022

3/4

The productions wit resides in its cultural distinction and commentary on football, and the restlessness of the children in the theater was not enough to dissuade me from appreciating the subtle humor of Early Man.

Go to Full Review

Andrew Lim

Mediaversity Reviews

11/14/2021

C-

Early Man's non-verbal warthog has more screen time than any female character.

Go to Full Review

Read all reviews

diogo13 T

@Tua_mera Jul 14

Uma das produções mais fracas e decepcionantes do estúdio. Apesar do visual apelativo em stop-motion, o argumento é preguiçoso, arrastado e perde-se numa metáfora de futebol enfadonha, desprovida do humor inteligente e do charme habituais da produtora.

See more

Puffy puff

May 22

Bro its too early to be an early man

See more

Sillyicyfemale

Dec 27

Dont ignore the crictis, agree with the critics

See more

Davetheman

Dec 24

If I was born early, this movie early man wasnt my childhood movies

See more

Puppies H

@Puppies942 07/09/2025

Absolutely.......MID

See more

K G

@KatyG-S 07/03/2025

It does not work with success, but it can work as entertainment*. I can give praise for its casting: Eddie Redmayne portraying Dug, our main focus who is meaningful & knowing for what is right, faith. There are many other English people as the villagers, large & comically relieving. Tom Hiddleston was marvelous as portraying Lord Nooth who could really sound outspoken & European which I am glad they could do whilst during the ongoing things in the late 2010s. I can give praise for its humour: the place where the movie is set in Manchester before the city was started. The chief who is an old man says that he is 32 years old - really, it does not seem that old today so it is kinda nonsensical. Another, "fowl" where the large duck is flying over & pooping on Lord Nooth. It seems to have meanings: do not steal anything of what belonged to others do not take the concept of winning too far (dominating & invading). The invasion also portrayed evolution, Stone Age to Bronze Age. DreamWorks "The Croods", I choose over this.

See more

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

POST RATING

Nick Park

Director

Eddie Redmayne

Dug

Tom Hiddleston

Lord Nooth

Maisie Williams

Goona

Miriam Margolyes

Queen Oofeefa

Timothy Spall

Chief Bobnar

Shaun the Sheep Movie

99%

81%

Shaun the Sheep Movie

Watchlist

The Son of Bigfoot

74%

42%

The Son of Bigfoot

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Son of Bigfoot

Missing Link

88%

67%

Missing Link

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Missing Link

Smallfoot

76%

62%

Smallfoot

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Smallfoot

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

87%

60%

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Watchlist

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Box Office: Black Panther Smashes $1 Billion with 4th Weekend at #1

Box Office: Black Panther Rules Oscar Weekend Nearing $900M Global

Box Office: Black Panther Continues Its Reign

Early Man: B-Roll

4:41

Early Man: Final Trailer

1:00

Early Man: Trailer 1

2:20

Early Man: International Trailer 3

2:25

Early Man: International Trailer 2

2:14

Early Man: Teaser Trailer

2:29

Early Man: International Trailer 1

2:23

Early Man: International Teaser Trailer 1

1:10

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

A plucky cave man named Dug, his sidekick Hognob and the rest of their tribe face a grave threat to their simple existence. Lord Nooth plans to take over their land and transform it into a giant mine, forcing Dug and his clan to dig for precious metals. Not ready to go down without a fight, Dug and Hognob must unite their people in an epic quest to defeat a mighty enemy -- the Bronze Age.

Director: Nick Park
Producer: Carla Shelley, Richard Beek, Peter Lord, Nick Park, David Sproxton
Screenwriter: Mark Burton, James Higginson
Distributor: Lionsgate Films
Production Co: StudioCanal, Aardman Animations
Rating: PG (Rude Humor and Some Action)
Genre: Kids & Family, Comedy, Adventure, Animation
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 16, 2018, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): May 15, 2018
Box Office (Gross USA): $8.2M
Runtime: 1h 29m
Sound Mix: DTS, Dolby Atmos
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

Join The Newsletter

Join The Newsletter

Cookie Settings