'
Rotten Tomatoes
Cancel Movies Tv shows FanStore News Showtimes

The Boxtrolls

Play trailer 2:25 Poster for The Boxtrolls PG Released Sep 26, 2014 1h 36m Kids & Family Adventure Comedy Fantasy Animation Play Trailer Watchlist
Watchlist Tomatometer Popcornmeter
78% Tomatometer 173 Reviews 63% Popcornmeter 25,000+ Ratings
Eggs (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), an orphan, lives with the Boxtrolls -- a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who inhabit a cavern beneath the city of Cheesebridge. When villainous Archibald Snatcher (Ben Kingsley) hatches a plan to get rid of the pretty harmless beings, Eggs decides to go above ground, where he meets and befriends feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, Eggs and Winnifred devise a daring plan to save the Boxtrolls from extermination.
Watch on Fandango at Home Buy Now

Where to Watch

The Boxtrolls

The Boxtrolls

What to Know

Critics Consensus

While it's far from Laika's best offering, The Boxtrolls is still packed with enough offbeat wit and visual splendor to offer a healthy dose of all-ages entertainment.

Read Critics Reviews

Critics Reviews

View All (173) Critics Reviews
David Ehrlich Complex The antidote to the modern animated movie. Rated: 4/5 Sep 27, 2014 Full Review David Stratton At the Movies (Australia) This kind of stop-motion animation (wittily demonstrated during the end credits) results in wonderfully detailed characters and action. Rated: 3.5/5 Sep 26, 2014 Full Review Lisa Kennedy Denver Post There are many more delighted 'Ewwws' than too-easy 'Awws' in this charming, if a tad cynical, feature from the creators of Coraline and ParaNorman. Sep 26, 2014 Full Review Allison Rose FlickDirect This Laika Studios/Shout! Factory collaboration delivers a well-crafted product that exceeds expectations. Rated: 4/5 Feb 28, 2023 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review The Boxtrolls contains so much charm in its squalor, so much joy in its decrepitude, that the black humor and beautiful animation cannot help but leave an audience delighted. Rated: 3.5/4 Jul 18, 2022 Full Review Cory Woodroof Williamson Home Page If there's anything The Boxtrolls isn't lacking in, its confidence. Feb 11, 2022 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

View All (1000+) audience reviews
Daniel W It's a hilarious yet beautiful and intelligent film for any age Rated 5 out of 5 stars 06/02/25 Full Review Stephen C LOL, successful comedy family animation movie in 1 hour and 35 minutes!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rated PG for Mild Rude Humor, Action and Some Peril. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 05/31/25 Full Review Stephen L "The Boxtrolls" is a visually inventive stop-motion film that embraces Laika’s signature gothic charm, but its storytelling doesn’t quite match its technical brilliance. The animation is stunning, with intricate character designs and an eerie yet whimsical atmosphere that sets it apart from mainstream animated fare. However, the narrative feels stretched thin, and the humor is hit-or-miss, making it less engaging than Laika’s stronger outings like "Coraline" and "ParaNorman." While it delivers a heartfelt message about acceptance and belonging, "The Boxtrolls" ultimately falls short of being a truly great animated film. Rated 3 out of 5 stars 03/15/25 Full Review Jorge R Another good flim from Laika! Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 04/09/25 Full Review Tyler P Boxtrolls is another hit from Laika that, though it falls short of its predecessors, only does so by a nebulous feeling of knowing I enjoyed the two previous films more, however original style is something we often miss in animation today, and so anything by Laika stands head and shoulders above average animated films. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 12/11/24 Full Review JASON M Super cute and a amazing movie Rated 5 out of 5 stars 11/27/24 Full Review Read all reviews
The Boxtrolls

My Rating

Read More Read Less POST RATING WRITE A REVIEW EDIT REVIEW
How to Train Your Dragon 2 92% 90% How to Train Your Dragon 2 Watchlist TRAILER for How to Train Your Dragon 2 ParaNorman 89% 72% ParaNorman Watchlist Smurfs: The Lost Village 41% 54% Smurfs: The Lost Village Watchlist TRAILER for Smurfs: The Lost Village Shrek Forever After 58% 54% Shrek Forever After Watchlist TRAILER for Shrek Forever After A Town Called Panic 81% 86% A Town Called Panic Watchlist TRAILER for A Town Called Panic Discover more movies and TV shows. View More

Movie Info

Synopsis Eggs (Isaac Hempstead-Wright), an orphan, lives with the Boxtrolls -- a community of quirky, mischievous creatures who inhabit a cavern beneath the city of Cheesebridge. When villainous Archibald Snatcher (Ben Kingsley) hatches a plan to get rid of the pretty harmless beings, Eggs decides to go above ground, where he meets and befriends feisty Winnifred (Elle Fanning). Together, Eggs and Winnifred devise a daring plan to save the Boxtrolls from extermination.
Director
Anthony Stacchi, Graham Annable
Producer
David Bleiman Ichioka, Travis Knight
Screenwriter
Irena Brignull, Adam Pava
Distributor
Focus Features
Production Co
Laika
Rating
PG (Mild Rude Humor|Action|Some Peril)
Genre
Kids & Family, Adventure, Comedy, Fantasy, Animation
Original Language
English
Release Date (Theaters)
Sep 26, 2014, Wide
Release Date (Streaming)
Jan 21, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA)
$50.8M
Runtime
1h 36m
Most Popular at Home Now